I Promise You
by DT46
Summary: Erina and Soma have been a relationship ever since high school. Even with both of them living successful lives, they always have time for each other, no matter how far they are. And that love comes from a promise he made to her. A promise that he intends to keep, no matter what.
1. Prologue: The Promise is Made

Erina Nakiri is happy. At the young age of 25, her critically acclaimed restaurant, _La Belle Vie,_ has been ranked Number 1 in the Miele Guide 3 times in its 6-year life. She is also one of the most famous and influential figures in the culinary world, and she has claimed the hearts of millions around the world, for both her food, and her stunning beauty.

While she has claimed the hearts of millions, one man alone claims hers. Her idiotic, but wonderful boyfriend, Sōma Yukihira.

Compared to the instantly recognizable figure that she is, Sōma is a nobody. Very few people have heard about the man known as Sōma Yukihira. Most of Erina's fans don't even know that she even has a boyfriend.

For those who do know him however, some would say that he is the most important figure of the current generation of culinary arts. His girlfriend would say otherwise, but she still sees him in a very high regard.

Why is this so? Well, Sōma is known as "The Innovator". Sōma and his father, the much more known Jōichirō Yukihira, known in the culinary world as "Asura", are the users of the Yukihira Style of cooking. While Jōichirō was travelling around the world, he developed and perfected his style, bringing unconventional ingredients and cooking methods to traditional dishes to elevate them to unimaginable heights.

And while one Yukihira was perfecting his style, the other was starting his up.

* * *

Sōma was a part of the 92nd generation at Tōtsuki Cooking Academy, along with Erina, and a bunch of their friends. The skills that Sōma developed helped make miracles happen in the 3 years that they were there.

Perhaps the biggest miracle was during the Central Takeover.

In their first year, Erina's father, Azami Nakiri, came back into her life. Erina was traumatized by her father and his "training" as a child, making her unable to do anything. That was until Sōma made her realize what her purpose was to cook. After that revelation, she was able to stand up to her father. And after months of hard fought battles, tears wereshed, lives were changed…

And they won.

With Sōma leading the charge, the rebels were able to takedown Central, and restore peace to their beloved school. Erina was finally truly free from her father, and all was calm.

Erina was grateful to everyone for helping her get through the toughest and hardest time in her life. But she felt indebted to Sōma. He gave his everything to save, help and protect her, despite everything that she did to him when they first met.

It was around this time that Erina felt something in her heart while thinking of the redhead.

The rest of their time there was drama free, and the main thing that Erina experienced during her second year was the realization that she loved Sōma.

It took a few months, and the help of her cousin, Alice Nakiri, and her best friend, Hisako Arato, but she couldn't deny them anymore. Erina Nakiri was in love with Sōma Yukihira.

It was during the beginning of their third year that Sōma had asked Erina to be his girlfriend. While Erina was stunned, she gladly accepted, and thus was the beginning of the power couple who led Tōtsuki.

The two of them had a game going on. What started as a promise the boy made to the girl in their first year, became the biggest reason that they stayed together and loved each other so much. It was also the reason why Sōma was able to develop his style so much. Sōma tried everything in his arsenal to try and make his girlfriend say that his food is delicious, and when she would inevitably say that it wasn't, he would laugh and ask her what was wrong. He used her criticisms to improve more and more in his cooking, becoming one of the main figures of the student body, alongside his girlfriend, and all of their friends.

It was these criticisms that led to Sōma's biggest decision: to travel around the world, just like his father, when he graduated.

His father became so well known because of his travels, and the subsequent perfection of his Yukihira style. So Sōma wanted to do the same, and he also wanted to help other chefs find their way as well.

So he told his friends and girlfriend near the end of their third year, and after a long, emotional conversation with Erina, he made this promise to the princess:

"I will come back, and when I do, I will make you say my food is delicious, hehe."

Graduation came not too long after. The 92nd generation was the most successful generation that Tōtsuki's ever had. And at the center of it all, stood Erina and Sōma, the power couple of Tōtsuki.

During the last party in the Polar Star Dorm, everyone learns of their plans for the future. For some of their friends (Ikumi, Megumi, the Aldini twins), they plan to inherit their families' fortunes, to be able to live out their lives as successful Tōtsuki alumni. And for most others (Alice, Akira, Erina, and others), they plan to start up their own restaurants, to be able to have their dreams come true.

But, as the party died down, and the next day started, everyone had to go their own separate ways. Everyone said goodbye to each other in the airport, waiting for the day that they get to reunite and get to show off their successes, and saw each other off, Eventually leaving Sōma and Erina alone.

"So Sōma-kun…" asked the blonde, shyly.

"What is it Nakiri?" asked the boy. Partly out of habit, and partly because Erina doesn't like her name being said out loud, Sōma resorts to usually calling the princess by her last name.

"You'll remember to call me when you get to Texas, right? I wouldn't want to worry about you while trying to get my restaurant started after all." She warned him.

"Yea, yeah, of course. I would hate to see you worried, and even more if you're angry." He teased.

"I-idiot… just remember alright? I love you." She giggled.

"I love you too." He pecks her on the lips. "I know your restaurant will be amazing, I can tell. Be sure to knock 'em dead." He said, that grin that she loves so much plastered on his face.

"Goodbye Sōma-kun! I'll miss you!" she said to his retreating form.

"I'll miss you too Erina! I love you!" he responded.

* * *

And that was the start of Sōma and Erina's journeys as chefs. Sōma travelled the world, finding new cuisines, and improving them using his Yukihira Style of cooking. These improvements made what looked to be simple dishes that would be served en masse, into works of art, that people would be begging for more. Sōma even gave the improvements to those aspiring chefs, hoping that they would use his techniques in order to give back to the people.

From barbeque in Texas, to Henan cuisine in China, to everywhere in between, Sōma travelled anywhere he could to improve himself, in hopes that the recipe he has back home will eventually make his girlfriend say what he's always wanted to hear.

And speaking of Sōma's girlfriend, what was she doing? She was getting her restaurant started. She wanted to make a restaurant of haute cuisine, but despite the French name she chose for her restaurant, she wanted to make high class food of all cultures. So, for 1 year, she started building up her restaurant, her aide and best friend, Hisako Arato, by her side.

And after the year, business started booming. _La Belle Vie_ was rated in the top 10 the first year of business, 3rd the second year, and first the other 3 years until now. Reservations were packed, people having to book up to a year in advance, and the food her and her staff made was amazing. French, Japanese, English, you name it, Erina had it covered.

And through all of that, just like all those years ago, she leaves a table reserved. While originally for her idol, Jōichirō Saiba (who she later figured out was Sōma's father), she expanded it to her redheaded idiot. No one knew why the table was there, except for the princess and her aide, and no one else was allowed to sit there.

And despite their conflicting schedules, the couple always found time to talk to each other. There was no lack of new topics between the two of them, intertwined with their playful banter and teasing. They talked about how their life has been, what new things did Sōma learn, how did Erina extend her dominance further, and on and on they went. And through all of that, they still loved each other. They never had any big fights, even with how Erina treated Sōma when they first met. After they started dating, they just clicked, and if they did have a fight, their best friends were there to calm them down.

The two of them loved each other more than they could ever imagine… but if fate was anything, it was unstable.

* * *

Author's Note: Hello people! Welcome to the start of my first fanfic!

This chapter was mostly exposition about how Soma and Erina's lives are going after graduation. Sorry if the romance feels rushed or not detailed enough, I don't have much to go off of (besides other fics) for romantic stuff.

Also, if the tag, description and last line aren't warning enough, this will not be a happy fic where we will see how their relationship blossoms and last. This will be a sad fic.

But, if you can handle that (or even if you can't), please leave reviews about this first chapter! Anything would be helpful, just no flaming. If you feel like the relationship I showed wasn't fleshed out enough, there was any loose ends I missed, or if anyone is OOC, please say so! While I kinda planned it not to be totally in character (I mean, I didn't make Erina tsun nearly hard enough), please, tell me so!

I don't expect this fic to be more than 3 chapters, I have a solid idea on how the story will progress.

Thank you so much for reading, and I hope to see you again soon!


	2. Change

Disclaimer (Since I forgot last chapter): I don't own Shokugeki no Sōma, just this story.

* * *

Some might wonder how Sōma and Erina are able to talk to each other so often. They are almost always in different time zones, unless Sōma is in a place with little time difference, such as in China, or in Vietnam. So how do they do it?

Using video chat.

Yes, the couple know each other's schedule very well. Erina's schedule is very stable, work from noon to 10, get home at 11, sleep from midnight to 8, then start all over. Sōma gives Erina his schedules during the days that he's helping someone out. Thus, they plan times so that they are able to talk to each other, not enough to burn them out, but enough to catch up on stuff that happened to them over the few days they don't chat.

When they see each other on that screen, both their days instantly become better. They both say that those few hours are the best times of their lives.

* * *

It was the middle of April. The couple enjoyed a small celebration for the Princess on her 25th birthday about a month ago, the two of them making a fancy dinner for themselves while Sōma was in Madrid for a week. They had a glass or 2 of champagne, and like usual, shared stories about what they were doing in the last couple of days.

Those memories were on Erina's mind while _La Belle Vie_ was on break, as she was setting up for their dinner shift, along with her staff.

"You're blushing again, Erina." She heard from her left, breaking her from her thoughts.

"Huh? O-oh! Hisako, a-am I?" She asked her friend, who laughed softly.

"Yes, yes you are. It's just nice to see you so in love, Erina. With Sōma-kun, no less!" She explained. Hisako dropped the -sama suffix on Erina's name near the end of their first year, Sōma was the force behind it. The words he told her during the stagiaire affected her greatly, much to the knowledge of… nobody else. From then on, she started to try and make herself as her own person, not just her then called master's secretary. After the fall of Central, Hisako saw it as a chance to start fresh, and started being more casual with Erina. She was also grateful to Sōma, not just for his words of encouragement, but for saving her friend, and making her the happiest she's ever been.

"It's been 5 years, Hisako. How have you not gotten that fact out of your mind yet?" Erina asked, a small blush on her cheeks.

Hisako smirked. "Well, look a bit further back, and I remember a girl who only knew about love from mangas. A certain girl who also didn't take a liking to- "

"Alright, alright, alright! So, maybe I didn't know about love. I hated my eventual boyfriend. But, my love just so happened to turn out like those mangas, so ha!" The blonde said, as proudly as she could with a heavy blush on her face.

Since Hisako and Erina's relationship changed from the master-servant dynamic, they started to act more and more like real friends, teasing each other and helping each other out, especially after graduation, with Hisako deciding to work with Erina at her restaurant as her sous-chef.

"Besides, don't tell me you don't do the same when thinking about- "Erina started to retort.

"Okay, okay, you got me." The pinkette said, a small blush now on her face. Hisako was in a relationship with one of their friends/rivals, Akira Hayama. After their initial confrontation at the Autumn Election, the two showed no hard feelings towards each other. A year, some classes and assignments together later, they were dating by the end of second year.

"Anyways…" Hisako said, coughing while trying to lose her blush, "What's Sōma-kun doing today?"

"Well… He's done working in America, and he got his schedule pretty early, so he told me he's headed to Turkey. Very interesting choice from him, I do not have much knowledge in Turkish cuisine." Erina replied, very interested to hear what her boyfriend would tell her about it when he finished up.

"Very nice indeed. He must be happy, travelling around the world, spreading his influence. Kinda like a blonde I know…"

"Indeed, I am very proud of him."

"Well, the crew and myself can handle the rest of the work, go and talk to him!" the sous chef said, smiling towards the head chef.

"Thank you very much Hisako, I appreciate the gesture." Erina said, bowing towards her friend, before walking into her office.

Her office was large, almost the size of one of the rooms in the Nakiri Manor. It was decorated rather plainly, awards, plates and chefs' coats were hanging on the wall or in a cabinet. It had a nice view of the Tokyo streets, and had a table in the center.

The table had a laptop, tablet and some other things on it, but to the blonde, 2 things always stood out to her.

One was a collection of postcard from all of her friends from Tōtsuki. They were from all places around the world: Italy, India, Denmark, and so on. She thought it was a great representation of her friends, and where their skills lie.

The other thing of importance was a picture, and some recipes. The picture was of Erina and Sōma, on their graduation day. Sōma had his arm wrapped around the girl, with his signature grin on his face. Erina, who at that time, was still a bit shy about romantic interactions, had a large blush on her face, but tried to smile so she would look nice for the picture.

The recipes were something that Sōma did every time before his flight to another country. The promise that he made to her, while intended for when he came back, was always something he tried to make true, no matter where he was. He had a dish that he thought of, using influences from his travels, and wrote down the recipe so he could give it to Erina, hoping that she would cave and say it was delicious. As always, the princess never said it, but told him what was wrong with the dish.

In all honesty, Erina found a few dishes from the redhead that she would consider good, or even great. But they both knew that a simple great wouldn't be enough to make him satisfied. He had to create the "perfect" dish, a dish that Erina found no flaws in, so she would say that magic word.

Erina thought to herself, shaking her head, ' _Who knew that would be one of the driving forces of our relationship._ ' She picked up her tablet and started to call Sōma.

 _*Ring…Ring…Ring…*_

"What's up Nakiri?" said the redhead, a smile on his face.

"Hey there Sōma-kun!" She replied excitedly, smile on hers as well.

"Aren't you working right now?" Sōma asked, knowing that his girlfriend was very focused when it came to her work.

"Well, Hisako said that her and the team can handle it, and let me talk to you." She answered. "Do you not want to talk to me?" She asked, faking a hurt expression.

"No, no, no! Of course I want to talk to you, Erina!" Sōma worriedly said, waving his arms around, making the blonde giggle.

"Jeez, I'm kidding! You know, either you're losing your touch, or I'm getting better at teasing you." She said, still laughing.

He sighed. "Well, when I'm awake for about an hour, even I can let some stuff get to me." He huffed, but then let a yawn come out.

"Yeah, I can tell, you've looked better." She said flatly, him rolling his eyes. "Well anyways, you ready to go to Turkey?"

"Yup! Stuff's packed, and I'm leaving in an hour or two." He said, excitement visible on his face.

"Well, you better tell me what the food is like there. I do not have a lot of knowledge on Turkish cuisine, and would love to find some new things for the restaurant." She warned him.

"Hm, maybe." He said.

"WHAT! Sōma-kun, you always tell me about the food you eat! Don't be like- "

"Kidding." He said, the grin on his face now annoying the blonde.

"Hmpf!" she huffed, turning away from him, not because she was actually angry at her boyfriend, but because she had a big blush on her face that she didn't want him to see.

"Oh, don't be like that Nakiri! You can take a joke, right?" He asked, some genuine concern on his face.

"U-u-uh-um…" she stammered, trying to fight the blush down. "O-of course I can, you idiot!"

She facepalmed.

' _Why did I say that?!_ '

Sōma however, was smart enough to know why his princess said that, and laughed. "Oh thank god, you're so cute when you get all flustered!" He said, still trying to tease the girl.

"S-s-shut up!" she snapped back, but after a few seconds, started to giggle.

"What is it Erina?" He asked.

"It's just so funny, how we talk to each other. It's like high school, but we're successful now, and I'm somehow still in love with you." She answered, thinking about how they acted in their first year.

The answer, however, caused her boyfriend to blush. "U-uh, yeah, I guess so."

They talked for a little longer, until Hisako came into the room.

"Erina, everything's ready, just need the go ahead from you. Hey there Sōma-kun." She greeted the boy.

"What's up, Hishoko?" Sōma replied, knowing full well what was about to happen next.

"It's Hisako, Sōma-kun! Get it right!" She yelled at the screen, causing both of her friends to laugh.

"I know, I know. How you doing, Hi-sa-ko?" Sōma said, enunciating each syllable.

She sighed. "Well, besides yelling at you…" she said, a blush on her face, while her friends were looking at each other and smirking, "I'm doing well."

"That's nice. How about Hayama?" he questioned.

"He is doing fineas well. He's coming back from Indonesia in a few days, I can't wait to see him again!" She said happily, dreamily staring off.

"Well, I have to go Sōma-kun. Talk to you soon, right?" Erina asked.

"Don't worry, we will." He assured, with a thumbs up.

"Good. I'll see you soon." She said, blowing a kiss towards Sōma.

"I will too… Oh! I sent my recipe to you. I think that this time, it'll get you to cave in, I swear it!" he said, pointing a finger up to the roof of his hotel.

"You say that every time, Sōma-kun, what makes you think it'll be different this time?" She asked, giggling. She was hoping for a great dish like always, despite never saying it to her boyfriend's face.

"Well, you'll see when you get it." He said, smirking again.

"We will see. Goodbye Sōma-kun." She said.

"Later Erina. See you Hishoko!" He said, breaking the girl out of her dream.

"Yeah, yeah. I swear, you better get my name right soon." The pinkette said threateningly, despite the smile on her face betraying her façade. "Bye Sōma-kun."

The screen went back to Erina's wallpaper, the cover of one her mangas.

"Alright!" Erina said, "It's time to go!"

* * *

It was midnight when Erina got back to her home, the Nakiri Manor. When she graduated, her grandfather proposed the idea of her living on her own, in a house near the restaurant. She declined however, as she wanted to look at the prospects from Tōtsuki. So she stayed in the manor, and sometimes goes back to Tōtsuki to critique dishes or new students.

Feeling dead tired after the usual grueling shift at work, she went up to her room, changed into her sleepwear (a nightgown) and fell asleep.

* * *

 _Apr 21, 20XX: 1:15 PM EST, 2:15 AM JST_

Sōma was on his flight, headed to Istanbul, Turkey, in first class. He always bought first class tickets, by the urging of his girlfriend.

He was eating a simple meal for lunch, a turkey club with some water.

' _Man, I am so proud of Erina, 5 years of dominance in Japan, she must feel great._ ' He thought to himself.

'... _This club is could use some work though, wish I had something to make it better._ ' He continued, looking at the sandwich. ' _I might pick up a job at an airport, I can probably find a way to improve it._ ' He decided, jotting the idea down into his phone.

" _ATTENTION. WILL ALL PASSENGERS GET BACK INTO THEIR SEAT AND BUCKLE UP. WE SEEM TO BE EXPERIENCING SOME RAIN UP AHEAD."_ Sōma heard over the PA system.

' _Rain huh? Thought it would be good weather today,"_ the redhead wondered. ' _Oh well, guess it's just how the weather is._ ' He shrugged it off, and put his seat belt on.

A minute or two later, he opened the cover on the window, looked outside, and was in mild shock.

"Uh, stewardess?" He called for one of the attendants.

"Yes, what do you need?" She asked sweetly.

"I though it was just some rain, but… the clouds are black." He told her, making her gasp.

"Really?" She asked, looking through the boy's window. "Crap, it wasn't this bad. O-ok, let me let the pilot know, thank you very much sir." She said with a bow.

"Don't worry about it." He waved it off, letting her go to the cockpit to warn the pilots.

' _I need to call Erina, right now!_ ' Sōma decided, and took out the tablet he kept in his bag, and called Erina.

* _Ring..._ _Ring...Ring...*_

* * *

AN: Hey all you people, hey all you people, hey all you people won't you listen to meeee... (if you get the reference, props to you)

But, in all seriousness, this will start to pick up next chapter. This chapter, as I was writing it, turned out to be more exposition ( _again, *sigh*, didn't mean for it to end up like this, but..._ ), focusing on Erina and Hisako's more friendly relationship, as well as how the couple interact with each other over their many video calls. I think the next chapter might be shorter, probably less than this one, but it will be important. Not that these first two weren't, but they were set up chapters in comparison to what I have planned for the next few chapters.

And yes, next _few_ chapters! I quickly realized that this story will definitely be more than 3 chapters now! I mean, if it was 3 chapters in how it's going right now, well...

Now I can see it going about 6-9 chapters, give or take.

Please leave reviews about this chapter! I made it a point to respond to every single (non-guest, sorry!) review I get, and I have with all reviews so far! If you would like to discuss things further with me, just say so, and I can strike up a PM! I'm actually writing up this AN while studying for my last exam for the year, so I will be free for a good while!

Thank you so much for reading, and I hope to see you again soon!


	3. Apologies

Disclaimer: I don't own Shokugeki no Soma, just this story.

* * *

 _Apr 21, 20XX: 1:20 PM EST, 2:20 JST_

* _Ring…Ring…Ring…*_

The blonde sleeping in the bed shuffled.

* _Ring…Ring…Ring…*_

Her eyes fluttered open, revealing the vibrant, purple irises of Erina Nakiri.

' _What the hell…who's calling me?_ ' she wondered, looking towards her tablet.

' _Sōma…? O-ok? Why is he calling now, he should know what time it is._ ' She picked up the tablet, and accepted the call from her boyfriend.

"Sōma-kun, it's 2 in the morning here. Why- " the girl started asking, before letting out a small yawn, "are you calling me now? I- "

"Yeah, yeah, I know you have work tomorrow. I mean, is there any day where you're not working?" Sōma asked, trying to tease his girlfriend. It didn't work.

"No, I work every day, you know that. You're avoiding my question however. Talk." She demanded, as fiercely as she could while barely being awake, unintentionally making an expression Sōma thought was really cute.

"Ok, ok. Well, you know I'm on the plane right now." He started explaining, to which she nodded. "Just look at this." He turned his tablet to the window, which showed nothing but darkness.

"Yeah, so?" She questioned. "It's dark outside, and for you, it's 1 in the…" The revelation of the time made her eyes widen.

"Yup. I'm in a thunderstorm right now." He stated. That made Erina worry.

"A-are you going to be ok?" she asked, half asleep, half afraid.

"I… I don't know. I told an attendant, and she told the pilots. Wait, she's coming towards me, I'll ask. Stewardess?" He called.

"Yes sir?"

"So what's the problem?" He inquired.

"The pilots are trying their hardest to get out of the storm, that's all they told me. I'm sorry sir, but I have to get back to my seat." She answered, in a hurry.

"Yes, no problem. Thank you very much." He replied. The attendant continued back to her seat.

"So? Did you find anything?" Erina asked.

"Just that they're trying to get out of the storm. I don't really know about- "

*CRASH*

That made the redhead jump.

"He, it's pretty loud from here." He said, while his girlfriend just glared at him.

"Idiot, of course it's going to be louder up there. You're in the middle of the clouds." She chided.

"Yeah, I guess so." He said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

*CRASH*

"Damn, it's getting pretty bad." Sōma stated.

"Yeah, I can hear it as well. So, did you just need me here to feel safe?" She teased a bit, knowing that a joke would be good for him to hear right now.

"Well, I always feel safe around you Nakiri." He replied, a small smile on his lips. Erina blushed a little bit at his response.

"J-jeez, Sōma, how cliché." She said, still blushing. This caused the redhead to laugh, making the blonde laugh as a result.

The two laughed for a bit until Sōma coughed to clear his throat.

"You know what's weird, Erina?" He asked.

"No, what is it?"

"I never would have thought 10 years ago that I would be in a situation like this."

"Sōma…" she said, anger and trepidation in her voice.

"No, not this. Thanks for the positivity by the way." He said, making the blonde narrow her eyes at him.

"Well what are you thinking about, huh? I'm scared that I might lose you, you know that?!" She almost yelled at him.

"Sorry, sorry! I didn't mean to say it like that!" He tried to calm her down. "It's just… it's been 10 years, you know?"

"10 years? 10 years since what?" She asked.

He looked up at the ceiling. "Since we first met."

*CRASH*

Behind those words was a hint of sadness. But, being as close as those two had been for so long, Erina picked up that Sōma was more than just a bit sad.

' _Why does he look so sad. What happened when we first-_ 'her mind then went to various memories involving the redhead.

Her saying his dish was disgusting, and rejecting his application.

Her wishing for him to lose his Shokugekis multiple times, so he would be expelled.

Her telling him that the day he left Tōtsuki would be the best day of her life.

The countless times that she told him that he was beneath her, that he would never be more than a second-rate chef, never enough to make it through Tōtsuki.

*CRASH*

Despite all that however…

He never seemed to hold it against her. He just smiled and teased her again.

He helped her through one of the darkest times in her life.

He asked her to be his girlfriend.

He changed her life. He made her the happiest she could be…

It crushed her.

She never apologized to him for those actions. All the times they were together in their third year, over video chat… not once did she think about what she did, and how it felt to him. They were so happy to be talking to each other, that it never came up.

But hearing him say those 4 words… She realized that she hurt him more than he let on.

"Sōma…" ' _At one point, I… I thought that he was a nobody._ '

"Sōma…?" ' _At one point, I… I wanted him out of my life._ '

' _ **A-at one point… I didn't care about him…**_ **'**

"Sōma!" The girl broke. "I'm so sorry! I… I never knew you felt like that! I never want to make you feel like that again! I'm so sorry!" she sobbed, her hands up against her eyes.

"Erina, it's ok. You know I would never be angry at you. It's just… it's just that I want to make sure you don't regret anything if I… if I don't make it." He said trying to console her.

" _If I don't make it. If I don't make it…"_ Was the one part that rang clear in her mind.

' _That's right… Sōma is in the middle of a thunderstorm. If the worst happens…_ '

The thought made her cry even harder. She just repeated to herself, "I'm so sorry… I'm so sorry."

Wanting to tell her more, he called to her.

"Erina." No response.

"Erina!" Still nothing. He sighed, and said something that never failed to get her attention.

"Erina, do you love me?" He asked. It's cheesy, but it never failed to stop his girlfriend from whatever mood she was in. This time was no exception.

She looked at him, tears still in her eyes. "O-of course I love you, Sōma. You know that." She whispered, just loud enough so he could hear it.

"I know, I know. That's why you could never hurt me that badly." He said, his eyes focusing on the love of his life. "Erina… you know I love you too, right?" He asked, getting a nod in response. "Well, I just want to say- "

*CRASH*

*ATTENTION PASSENGERS. WE WILL HAVE TO MAKE AN EMERGENCY LANDING. PLEASE PREPARE FOR IMPACT. OXYGEN MASKS ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU NOW."

Sōma felt the plane tilting down, and the mask fell beside him, barely out of view.

' _Oh no,_ ' he thought. ' _I have to tell her now, before we crash._ '

"Erina, I just want to say that I'm sorry." Before the blonde could respond, he continued. "I'm sorry that I wasn't around more. I mean, we only spent our third year together, and I left right after that. I'm so, so sorry that I wasn't there for you."

"Sōma… you never left my side." Erina said, with a teary-eyed smile. "Even if you weren't with me in person, you always helped me out. Forming a menu, discussing stuff about the restaurant… without you, my dream would have never become a reality. I just want to say, thank you so much." She bowed to her boyfriend and helper.

"Ahh, I didn't do that much." He waved it off, making her stare at him. "Okay, okay, so I helped you live your dream. I would have loved to eat a dish from the best restaurant in Asia, but your food in high school will do." He teased, getting a small laugh from the girl.

"Besides that, … you know the letter I'm sending you?" She nodded. "If the recipe really is delicious, and I mean, it has to be the best thing you've ever eaten, go to Restaurant Yukihira. Pops will be there, like usual. Just go up to him and tell him, he'll know what to do." He requested.

"And keep doing your best with _La Belle Vie_. You worked so hard for it, and I want you to succeed. I want you to have the best restaurant in the world, not just in Asia. Something you can brag about to Alice; now wouldn't that be nice?" He said laughing a bit, making a smile appear on the girl's face.

Despite his small jokes, Erina was worried.

' _Why is he telling me this now?_ ' She must have spoken her thoughts out loud, because the boy looked at her with dead serious eyes.

"Erina. The plane is going down." He stated, not mincing words. This made Erina gasp.

She continued to cry, and went to apologize. "Sōma, I'm so- "

"Hey, don't be sorry, ok? This wasn't your fault." He tried to calm her down.

"But this could have never happened to you!" She shouted. "A-a-all I had to do was one thing, and your life could have been different. I just had to say that your entrance dish was good… and it really was you know? I-If you didn't tease me back then I would have said so… I-if I said that, then- "

"We wouldn't have gotten to know each other as well as we did." He cut her off, making her listen to him as he continued. "If you think about it, if you never rejected my dish, then I wouldn't have made that promise to you all those years ago. I might have never saved you from your father. We might have not started dating. You made my life better Erina, and I love you, so, so much for it." He said, his voice starting to waver. "I'm sorry that I can't come back to you, but I love you so, so much."

Erina continued crying at the words he told her. "S-Sōma… I-I… I love you, so much. You gave me hope in my time of need. You gave me so many friends who have my back, and… you made me so happy. I've never felt happier in my life than when I'm talking with you. T-thank you." She said shakily, her hands reflecting how she felt.

"You did the same for me, Erina. Thank- "

*BOOM*

Sōma, wanting even a few more minutes with the love of his life, clutched the tablet to his chest, protecting it as well as he could.

Erina cringed as she heard metal scraping on ground, as the plane crash landed.

' _Wait… I can still hear stuff?_ ' she wondered.

"SŌMA-KUN! SŌMA-KUN!" She yelled, hoping that her boyfriend was alive, even for a little bit longer.

"E…E-Erina?" She heard from her speaker.

"YES! Sōma! How are you?" she asked, just trying to keep him talking for a bit longer.

"I-I've been better." He said with a small laugh, which turned into a fit of coughs. "Erina?" He called for her, tilting the tablet to his face.

"Sōma?" She asked shakily, before seeing her boyfriend's face. What she saw made her feel even worse.

His eyes were barely open, the excitement and life she always saw barely there, instead showing flashes of pain. The smile she both got annoyed at and loved was fading too, but a small, tired smile was present instead. She also saw some blood running down his face, and she could only describe how he looked as… "tired".

"B-be sure to tell… tell everyone that I loved them all… I t-thank them for every…everything they did f-for me." He stammered out between coughs. "But most of all… thank you E-Erina. I l-love you s-so, so much. I'm so sorry…" He said weakly, before he stopped, the tablet falling back onto his chest.

"S-Sōma…? S-S-Sōma? Sōma, please come back. Don't leave me, please! You promised you would come back! S-Sōma…" Erina was distraught, as the reality of the situation hit her.

Her saviour, her best friend, her one true love… was gone.

She would never see the smile she loved so much again. He would never tease her again. They would never be able to cook for each other.

Despite all the crying she did before, she was still able to keep going, letting out a wail to mourn the biggest loss in her life.

"SŌMAAAA!"

* * *

While Sōma was spending the last moments of his life with his girlfriend, Erina, her best friend was sleeping soundly. Hisako was resting in her room in the Nakiri manor, preparing for another day of work (by sleeping). She couldn't hear anything that was going on, as she had ear plugs in. She slept on a constant schedule, so she did anything she could to keep her from waking up, as she wanted to do everything she could to help Erina.

She never counted on a maid running into her room to wake her up.

"…Hisako!" the pinkette heard faintly, as she started to open her eyes and remove her ear plugs.

"Lady Hisako!" she heard again.

"Hmm, what is it? I'm trying to sleep." She said, yawning.

"It's about Lady Erina! Something with her and Mister Yukihira!" The maid explained hurriedly. This made Hisako wake up.

"Really?" She asked, to which the maid nodded. "Ok, thank you very much, you are dismissed." She thanked, the maid bowing and running out of the room. Hisako quickly got out of her bed, and started going to Erina's room.

' _Something involving Sōma-kun? Did he do something- '_

"SŌMAAA!"

The yell coming from her best friend's room almost made her break out into a sprint. She got to Erina's door, cautiously opening it.

"Erina? What's wrong?"

* * *

AN: Hey there people.

Yes, this is the chapter I was leading up to the entire time. If I didn't reply talking about it, or you haven't read my profile, tragedy is my favourite genre of fics to read. There is potential for a tragedy fic in this universe that doesn't go into an AU, so I decided to take a crack at it, leading to well... this.

Please leave reviews about this chapter, I would really appreciate it. It's great to see you guys compliment me, criticize me, predict upcoming events, and whatnot, so please let me have it. Some general ideas floating in my head that I imagine people will talk about (I'll still respond, as I find it great to interact with people, it will be a more in-depth response if asking about it.):

\- Soma is gone. Like, dead dead. He will be in the story, but he will never live again. (in terms of this universe/timeline)

\- Might be unrealistic, but I wanted to convey more of the feeling of the moment, not the realism of the situation.

\- I know how this story will end. It probably won't change.

Personally, I feel like this is the best chapter I've written so far, because I got out all the points that I wanted to, and to me, I conveyed the feelings I wanted to. But, I'll let you guys tell me how it is to you.

Again, I want to say that the situation is probably unrealistic. But it was more about the drama and emotion of the couple's final goodbye than how real it is. If your review criticizes how the situation wasn't realistic, my response will be not as pleasant as other responses.

Thank you for reading, and hope to see you next time.

P.S: Also 1 year anniversary of being a reader/writer on FFN (over 2 different acc), so pretty cool.


	4. Comfort

Disclaimer: I don't own Shokugeki no Soma, just this story.

* * *

"Erina! What's wrong? Did some- "The words died in Hisako's throat as soon as she saw her friend.

She saw one of the most important figures in the cooking industry; one of the strongest people she knew; she saw her friend, Erina Nakiri, shaking and sobbing. She couldn't see Erina's face, but she could hear everything.

"Erina!" Hisako quickly got into Erina's bed, and hugged her waist with her right hand, rubbing her back with the other.

"Erina, can you tell me what's wrong?" Hisako asked.

"S-Sōma-kun, he…he…" Erina tried her best to get the message across to her best friend, but couldn't do it, the experience too crushing for her. She fell into more crying.

Hisako was confused. ' _What could Sōma-kun have done to make Erina like this?_ '

She had one thought in her mind, and reluctantly said it to the crying girl.

"Did you guys get into a fight?" Hisako asked. She doubted it, as after all the couple went through before getting together, no small fight would make the confident princess cry this much. Her thoughts were confirmed, as Erina shook her head.

"NO!" Erina shouted, making the pinkette flinch.

"…S-sorry." Erina whispered, feeling bad for making her friend scared. She wanted to get this out to Hisako, so she wouldn't assume that Sōma did something to upset her. Erina wasn't upset at her friend either. Hisako knew Sōma for as long as the blonde, and Hisako knew that Sōma wouldn't be that kind of guy. But as Erina learned the hard way… relationships can change in a second.

"I-it's just t-that… Sōma…" Erina stammered.

"It's ok, Erina." Hisako said, continuing to try and comfort the blonde.

"Sōma… died on h-his plane." Erina was able to get out those words, before silently crying, still broken after what happened.

Hisako froze, out of shock and disbelief.

' _Wait… Sōma-kun… died? He's not alive anymore?_ ' This saddened Hisako. The one person who pushed her to become her own chef; the one person who fixed her relationship with her closest friend.

Hisako started to cry. She never thanked the redhead properly for everything that he did for her. He would have downplayed it, saying that it was her all along that caused the change, but she would have just laughed and told him that it was he who changed her for the better. And now that he's gone… she would never get the chance.

Hisako, through her tears, asked Erina: "W-what happened?" She still wanted to know, she wanted to know what took her friend, and great culinary mind, away from the world. Erina froze, and cried even harder.

"I-I-I-I'm so sorry Erina! I didn't mean to…" Hisako tried to apologize, forgetting that for as hard as it was for her, it must have been at least a thousand times worse for her best friend, and Sōma's girlfriend. Erina shook her head, however.

"N-no, I-it's ok. I'll…I'll tell you." Erina softly said, as she wanted to let her best friend know, as Erina knew that Sōma was important to the pinkette as well.

So explain she did. She explained the bad weather, their final goodbye, and the crash that ended Sōma's life, leaving both friends crying hard.

"…And h-he said t-that…" Erina continued, between sobs. "H-he said t-that he… he loved me, and all of y-you guys, that he was s-so thankful for everything that w-we did for him… and his l-last words…" Erina tried to keep going, but broke down again. Hisako wrapped both arms around the blonde, crying just as hard as Erina.

"I-it's ok… it's ok…" Hisako whispered into Erina's ear, trying her best to comfort her through her own tears.

"H-his last w-words were… "I'm so sorry…". H-he apologized. I-I-I don't even know what he was doing it for! I just don't know!" She cried, burying her head into Hisako's shoulder crying even more. Hisako was silent, trying to comfort her friend while thinking on what Sōma said.

' _What would Sōma-kun have to be sorry for? He was able to do a lot for so many people. He helped Tadokoro-san become more confident in herself, helped me stand with Erina, and so many others at Tōtsuki. And Erina… he did so much, spent so much of his time helping her. He was the nicest person that all of us met…_ '

Hisako was left confused, and found herself crying at her last thought. The fact that Sōma was so selfless, that he would do much for his friends; for the world to get rid of him just like that… it was heartbreaking.

"I'm so sorry Erina." Was all Hisako was able to get out, not knowing what words would comfort her friend. "Sōma was…was so i-important. T-to all of us." She continued, before continuing to cry.

This went on for a while, before Hisako felt Erina's cries go to sniffles, and then to no sounds.

' _She cried herself to sleep…_ ' Hisako thought sadly to herself. She laid Erina down on the bed, and sat beside her, stroking her hair while looking out the large window beside the bed. She didn't have anything that she was thinking about, just a silent mourning for her good friend.

She stayed in Erina's room the entire night, falling asleep a bit after her best friend.

* * *

Erina woke up early the next morning, wiping the tiredness from her eyes. She then sat up, and heard a moan from beside her. She turned her head to see the pink hair of her best friend, who was under the blanket, trying to hide from the sun.

' _Hisako? What's she doing here?_ ' Erina wondered, but the memories of last night rushed back to her.

The call in the middle of the night.

Her final goodbye.

Hisako comforting her.

" _I'm so sorry…"_

' _Oh… right._ ' Erina thought sadly, tears already starting to form in her eyes.

Hisako soon got up with a yawn, stretching her arms out.

"Good morning, Erina. Are you- "Hisako looked towards her friend, and saw Erina shaking, tears threatening to spill. So she scooted up to Erina, and rubbed her back.

"It's ok, it's ok…" Hisako said.

* * *

The two friends decided to close down the restaurant for a while due to personal reasons, and Hisako let their chefs know. With the week now opened up, they did not have much to do. Hisako's boyfriend, Akira Hayama, called the pinkette to let her know that he was back in Japan, however. Her eyes lit up at the call, and went to tell Erina.

"Erina!" Hisako called.

"Yes Hisako, what is it?" Erina asked.

"Hayama-kun just came back from Indonesia, and I'm going to pick him up from the airport!" Hisako said.

"O-oh. Is t-that so? Alright then…" Erina asked, shakily.

Hisako gasped and mentally facepalmed.

' _You idiot! Why would you say your boyfriend came back when her's just died!? Idiot!_ ' She scolded herself, as she ran up to Erina, and bowed repeatedly.

"I'm so sorry Erina! I didn't mean to make you think like that! I wasn't thinking! I- "she stopped when she felt Erina's hand on her shoulder.

"It's-it's ok, Hisako. I don't want to dampen your mood. I-I'm still happy for you. After all, you're my best friend. I want you to be h-happy as well." Erina said, trying to calm her friend down. She knew Hisako couldn't help it. She loves Hayama, almost as much as she loved Sōma.

"Go and make yourself look nice. Just do me one thing…" Erina said.

"Yes, anything Erina. What would you like?" Hisako quickly replied.

"Come back here with Akira. W-we need to tell everyone what happened, before they find out somewhere else." Erina requested.

Hisako slowly nodded. "A-alright Erina. If you're feeling ready, I'm behind you one hundred percent!" Hisako then ran up to her room to change.

She came down not too long after, wearing a nice sundress with sandals.

"Alright Erina, I'm going out!" Hisako said. "Are you going to be alright?"

"Y-yup, don't worry about me. Just go and pick up Hayama, alright?" Erina asked.

"No problem. Alright, I'm off!" Hisako called, going out the door.

As the door closed, Erina was feeling down once again. In times like these, she would call Sōma to talk, to rid her of the boredom. But with him… not here anymore, she had no way to entertain herself. She considered reading her mangas, but immediately thought against that. Seeing a perfect relationship between the two lead characters hit a bit close to home for her. So instead, she went to her room.

She went to her bookshelf, but did not pick up a manga, but a photo album. It was a small album, but it held valuable memories for the blonde.

It had various pictures during her and her friends' time at Tōtsuki.

One of the standout pictures is of the group at one of Polar Star's signature parties. She remembered this party as the one that was celebrated after beating Central. With Erina and Sōma leading the rebels, they fought their hardest. While Erina was one of the leaders, she felt that Sōma was the true leader, bringing hope and confidence to the rebel team, in addition to doing the most work out of the rebel team. And in the end…

* * *

Flashback Start

* * *

 _WINNER! REBELS!_

 _Cheers were heard from their friends, as central was shocked. Azami Nakiri, Erina's father, was speechless, and simply stormed off, before being stopped by Erina's grandfather, Senzarmon Nakiri, and forced to leave Tōtsuki for good. The rest of Central started a slow applause to the rebels, commending their efforts, which led to a standing ovation from the students at Tōtsuki._

 _The rebel team, just now realizing what happened, cheer as well._

" _Yukihira-kun! We won! We saved Tōtsuki!" Erina cheered._

" _Y-you did great Sōma-kun." Megumi complimented._

 _The two of them ran up to Sōma and gave him a hug._

" _Thanks guys, it was nothing. You guys did good as well." Sōma said, sounding a bit tired. This did not go unnoticed by the two girls however._

" _Yukihira-kun, are you alright?"_

" _Y-yeah, are you ok, Sōma-kun?"_

 _Sōma nodded weakly._

" _Yeah, I'm fine!" He said, smiling as best he could. "Just a bit tired is all…" he then started to fall over, but was supported by his 2 friends._

" _Yukihira!/Sōma-kun!"_

* * *

Flashback End

* * *

Erina laughed a bit at the memory.

' _That idiot, he worked himself too hard. But… I'm glad. I don't know if I would have been able to do the same. Doing so much to save his friends…'_ Erina smiled sadly.

She then noticed another picture, a picture that she held dear, more than the picture of her as a little kid with Sōma's father.

It was on the balcony of the Polar Star Dorm. They were hugging, their arms wrapped around each other, no space between them. The two of them had serene faces, very different from how they usually were. They were like this because they didn't know anyone was there with them, when Sōma "professed" his love to Erina.

* * *

Flashback Start

* * *

" _Erina Nakiri, I challenge you to a Shokugeki!" Sōma exclaimed, pointing a finger at said girl, who's eyes widened._

" _W-w-what the hell Sōma-kun! What do you want from me this time?" Erina asked, a bit taken off guard. Usually Sōma would challenge her for her first seat in the Elite Ten, in front of all of their friends and fellow seated members. This time was different, however._

 _Sōma asked Erina to go to the balcony with him, so it was just the two of them. Because of this, Erina had no idea what Sōma would want._

" _Well, it's not for your seat… this time." Soma said, rubbing the back of his head. "But I'll let you decide what my loss would mean, because honestly, I don't really know what would be equal to my condition."_

' _Well this is a first… what the hell is this idiot thinking?' Erina thought to herself._

" _Alright then, I can't decide on a suitable condition if I don't know what yours is, so what is it?" Erina demanded._

" _Umm… uh…" Soma stammered._

" _Well? Answer me Sōma!" Erina asked, a little louder. Behind the force of her words, she was even more confused._

' _I've never seen Sōma-kun act this nervous before, for anything. He's usually recklessly doing things, with only confidence on his face. What would be the thing that would make the Sōma I know act like this.'_

" _Well… if I win, I was going to ask you to become my girlfriend." Soma said sheepishly, rubbing his head again._

"… _Huh?" Was all Erina replied. She was in utter shock._

 _Sōma sighed. "Look Nakiri. I've always admired you. You pushed me to do my best at Tōtsuki, and look where it has gotten me: one of the best chefs at the academy, and second seat of the Elite Ten. It's just something about you, ya know? I mean, I did make that promise to you all those years ago." He said, doing his signature grin._

 _Erina was able to get out one question in response. "How long…"_

" _Well actually, it was just a couple of weeks ago. Tadokoro and the rest of Polar Star had to help me, because as Tadokoro said to me, "you can be such an idiot sometimes, you know that?" So they made me understand that my admiration for you was not just that, but something more." Sōma explained._

 _At his explanation, Erina shook her head. "I… I can't accept your challenge, Sōma-kun." She was hoping that Sōma couldn't see the large blush on her cheeks._

" _Oh, alright then. Just forget this happened." Soma said, dejected._

' _No! I can't let it end like this! Goddamit Sōma, of course you're going to make me the one to do this!' Erina thought, as she gained her confidence._

" _NO! Just wait Sōma-kun!"_

" _Hm?" Sōma stopped, and turned around._

" _I can't let you do that… I won't let you because I love you too!" Erina confessed, making the redhead freeze._

" _Wait… y-you're serious?" Sōma asked._

' _GOD YOU CAN BE SO ANNOYING SOMETIMES!' Erina thought to herself._

" _OF COURSE I'M SERIOUS, YOU IDIOT!" she yelled, making the redhead flinch._

 _It was only for a second however, as Sōma stopped acting like his joyful self, becoming oddly serious, catching Erina off guard._

 _"Well to be fair, I was expecting you to reject me because I'm "not worthy" to be your boyfriend." Sōma said, putting quotes around "not worthy"._

 _Erina, who looked back at her past self and thought that would be exactly what she would have said before, blushed and went up to Sōma, her head down to prevent him from seeing her still present blush._

" _T-that was before you saved me, Sōma-kun." Erina said, looking up to Sōma._

" _Ohhh, I guess that makes sense." Sōma realized, head pointed up at the moon._

" _So does that mean…"_

" _Yes Sōma-kun, I'll be your girlfriend." Erina said._

" _Cool." That was all he said before he hugged Erina, one arm around her waist, one lying on her back._

" _S-S-Sōma-kun!" Erina squeaked out, embarrassed at the situation she was in._

" _What, I can't hug my girlfriend?" He teased, his grin coming back full force._

 _She was glad that she was going to see it, as annoying as it could be sometimes._

" _A-alright. Just shut up, and stay like this." Erina chided._

" _Alright Nakiri, whatever you say." Sōma laughed softly, wrapping both arms around his new girlfriend, and held her tight._

 _*SNAP*_

 _"Ha ha! I knew this would happen!" Alice yelled out from the roof, making the two lovebirds snap out of their embrace._

 _"Alice_ … _" Erina darkly called to her cousin._

 _"Oh hey Alice." S_ _ōma said plainly, a stark contrast to Erina's mood._

A doorbell ringing interrupted Erina's memory. She also noted that she had tears coming down her face, and wiped them off.

* * *

Flashback End

* * *

After Hisako came back with Hayama, Erina and Hisako broke the news to their friends, who were gathered together over voice chat.

The reaction that initially happened was one of dead silence.

"Y-you're joking, aren't you, Erina?" Erina's cousin, Alice, asked, her usual playful nature toned down instantly at the news.

"N-no, Alice. I-I wish I was, but I… I saw him die." Erina choked out, making everyone gasp.

"Nakiri-san, d-d-do you know w-w-what h-happened?" Megumi Tadokoro, Sōma's best friend, asked, starting to break down.

"Y-yes, I do…" Erina sadly said, bracing herself for this.

So she explained everything that happened the night before once again, to all of their friends. It never got any easier anytime she explained it, and as she was nearing the end, she was barely holding on.

"A-and he said… to t-t-thank you guys… t-that he loved you all f-for e-everything you did for him…" Erina was continuing, her tears falling freely, as Hayama rubbed her and Hisako, who was crying again, after hearing the story for the second time, on their backs, him silent as he did so.

"H-his last words… his l-last w-words were," Erina continued on, trying her best to finish up before she broke down completely. "I-I'm so sorry…" At those words, she finally cracked, crying uncontrollably.

After the story was done, Megumi suddenly logged off the call, as the rest of the group let the words sink in. A sniffle was heard from both Alice and Ikumi, and soon, everyone was grieving, in one way or another.

Ikumi was crying, cursing the world for taking away her crush turned friend, as Takumi, her boyfriend, comforted her, cursing that he never got his final challenge against his redheaded rival.

Alice was crying as well, bring comforted by her boyfriend/servant, Ryō. He, like Hayama, was silent as well.

And so was the only member of their group who did not graduate with them, their senior, Satoshi Isshiki. The group's caring, albeit eccentric senior was not doing anything to try and lighten the mood. He was silent, more so than the other men.

After a few minutes of grieving, Erina bid farewell to everyone, and Hisako and Hayama went to Hisako's room, so they could support each other in their grieving.

Erina was still broken over retelling the story of her love's untimely demise once again, when she heard the doorbell ring as the sun was going down.

Wiping her tears, she opened the door, which revealed a head with beautiful blue hair and striking yellow eyes.

"T-Tadokoro?" Erina stuttered, not believing her eyes.

Megumi just nodded. As soon as Erina told the story of her best friend's death, she found and went on the first possible train going from Tōhoku to Tokyo, in order to go to the Nakiri Estate.

"P-please, come in." Erina motioned for Megumi to come inside, closing the door and taking off her shoes behind her.

"H-how come you're here? I heard you go off the call…" Erina asked, looking down at her feet, curious as to why Megumi was here so late at night.

"Nakiri-san…" Megumi whispered, loudly enough for the blonde to hear.

Erina looked up, to see Megumi have outstretched arms.

Erina knew right away what her friend was doing for her.

She instinctively ran into the bluenette's arms, and sobbed heavily.

"Tadokoro! I'm so sorry! I-I-I could have stopped this! I-I don't know why- "she stopped when she felt Megumi put a hand on top of her head.

"I-it's ok, Nakiri-san. N-nothing c-could have been done to… t-t-to…" Megumi tried to get out the words to comfort her crying friend, but she couldn't handle it anymore, and broke down in tears.

The two of them kept their embrace, crying into the midst of night.

* * *

A week or so passed by, and Erina, with the help of Megumi and Hisako, felt stable enough to re-open the restaurant.

Word spread around the culinary world about _La Belle Vie's_ closing, and speculations as to why it was so. Erina never commented, as she would rather let people think their own thoughts than for her to go through the story again, just as she was starting to pick herself up.

Hisako and Megumi became close friends during their endeavors to bring Erina's stability back, which said blonde smiled at.

' _At least something came of all this..._ '

* * *

A few days after the re-opening of the restaurant, and Erina was at home, getting herself ready to go to bed, another shift done. She let Megumi stay in one of the many bedrooms in the Nakiri manor throughout this ordeal, and Megumi was at first reluctant, but after some encouragement from both Erina and Hisako, she thanked them and moved there.

Said bluenette, along with her friend, were chatting about some ideas for some dishes the two were thinking of, when a maid gave some letters to Hisako.

"Thank you very much, you are dismissed." Hisako thanked, the maid bowing and moving away from the two.

"I-it's odd to have people do stuff for you..." Megumi said to the pinkette, who shrugged.

"Once you live here for a while, you just get used to it." Hisako responded, sorting through the letters, when one caught her eye.

Well, more than caught her eye, it froze her.

"A-Arato-san?" Megumi called, a bit worried for her friend.

Hisako turned the letter towards Megumi, silent.

Megumi recognized the writing, and her eyes widened.

"Arato-san! Snap out of it! We have to give this to Nakiri-san!" Megumi, with newfound confidence, spoke excitedly to Hisako, who shook her head.

"Y-yeah! Let's go!" The two of them ran up to Erina's room.

"Erina!/Nakiri-san!" the two called to the blonde.

Erina was in her chair, looking over some papers when she heard the call.

"Yes? What is it Hisako, Tadokoro?" She asked.

Hisako gave the letter to Erina.

"Erina! The letter!" the pinkette said.

"The letter?" Erina wondered, looking down. "What l- " She froze.

'To: Erina Nakiri

From: Sōma Yukihira'

* * *

AN: Hey everyone!

So it's been about a week since the last chapter, so if it feels a bit late, sorry. I just hit a small slump.

I had one version of this chapter before, but I absolutely hated the second half of it. So I did what some people would do, and rewrote the chapter.

I like this version of the chapter much better, I feel like I did a better job conveying what I wanted.

Um, don't expect a lot of involvement with the group of characters I referenced in this chapter, only Hisako and maybe Megumi will become MCs of sort, as them 3 along with Soma were the most linked together, in this timeline I have.

I planned to have the ending portion at the start of the next chapter

So now that chapter stuff is out of the way, onto the future!

I was talking with one of my reviewers (hey nagitochris!), and she said that a one shot of last chapter in Soma's POV would be cool to see. I thought to myself, 'hm, not a bad idea.' I need to understand Soma's character more, and what better to do that than think of how he would think as he's dying? Not the happiest of thoughts, I know but moving on.

Sometime after I finish this story, I plan to write just that: a three-shot of Soma's death. If you read nagitochris' review of the chapter, she said that it could be more detailed. As such, I have 1 part in Soma's POV, another one, which would be a rewrite of the chapter in this story (in Erina's POV), and one with... let's just say a very different case.

Well anyways, please leave reviews of this chapter! I would love to read reviews, either critiques or compliments, it makes me feel good either way. Next chapter will be about what the letter contains, and a (crappy) preparation of some kind of dish, leading up to the big scene. Think of Soma's death scene, but with a different feel.

It'll either make the next chapter super long, or will be it's own chapter. One of the two, I have to see when I finish up the stuff that will happen for sure.

I've gone on long enough, so...

Thanks for reading, and hope to see you again!


	5. Worth

Disclaimer: I don't own Shokugeki no Soma, just this story.

* * *

Erina was frozen.

' _A letter, from Sōma?_ ' at this, she snapped out of her shock, and remembered what Sōma told her.

' _You know the letter I'm sending you? If the recipe is really delicious, go to Restaurant Yukihira. If you tell pops that it was truly the best, he'll know what to do.'_

"Hisako. Tadokoro. We have to read this letter." Erina stated, deadly serious.

"Right!" The two said in unison.

* * *

The three friends were at Erina's dining room table. Sōma's letter was opened, revealing 2 papers. One was a letter directed for Erina, and one was the recipe card. Sōma was very adamant about the point that Erina was never to look at the recipe sheet until after she tried the dish, and told Sōma what she thought about it. Erina got Hisako to make the dishes because if anyone could cook nearly as well as the acclaimed God's Tongue, it was her best, most trusted friend.

However, things have changed. Besides Sōma's death, a fact that still impacted the 3 girls deeply, another thing was the third girl. Megumi was never around whenever Erina got her letters, so she could never be a part of it, besides giving her best cheers for Sōma to do well. So now that she was here…

"Tadokoro, would you be able to help Hisako with this recipe?" Erina asked, although she was sure of the answer she would get.

"Yes! N-no problem at all Nakiri-san!" Megumi said, bowing toward the blonde.

"Alright. Now that that's settled…" Erina continued, preparing herself to read the last letter she would get from her loving boyfriend.

' _This is it… after this… my life will never be the same. I'll never see or hear from my ray of hope, happiness, love… I'll never see Sōma again…_ '

This thought was in her mind the entire time she was trying to open the letter. She was stalling, because she wasn't ready. She was ready to wake up, and be out of this nightmare. She was ready to see Sōma once again, ready to live the rest of her life with him.

But when she felt two sets of arms wrap around her, she knew it wasn't a dream. Sōma was really gone, and the letter she had in her hand is the last thing he ever wrote.

"It's ok, Erina. We'll help you through this. It's been hard… on all of us." Hisako said, comforting the crying princess. She had to do this, as for the first couple of days after that fateful night, Erina was an emotional wreck. She was never tired of doing this for her best friend, because in her time of need, the pinkette would have to be there, when the redhead could not.

"Y-yes, Nakiri-san. I-i-it's ok, we'll g-get through it." Megumi stammered out, starting to tear up herself. She felt the same pain that Erina did, as while she was not Sōma's girlfriend, she was almost as close to him as the blonde, as ever since their first meeting at Tōtsuki, they were the best of friends, as inseparable as Erina and Sōma were.

"O-ok. It'll be ok…" Erina said to herself, deeply breathing to calm herself.

Seeing as she calmed down, Hisako and Megumi moved to the kitchen, to prepare the ingredients for the recipe.

Erina stayed in her chair, finally unfolded the letter, and began reading.

* * *

' _Yo Nakiri,_

 _How's it going? I mean, you'll probably have already told me, so I don't really know why I asked, hehe.'_

Erina could see Sōma grin, his hand rubbing the back of his head.

' _Anyways, here's this trip's recipe. I really did learn a lot, cooking in the US. Learned so much about barbeque, comfort food, and all sorts of stuff. I know I say it a lot in these letters, but this trip was life-changing, ya know?_

 _But, as good as this trip has been to "expand my horizons" or whatever the term is, I'm ready for my next trip. I assume you got my schedule? Yup, I'm headed to Turkey! How cool is that, huh?'_

Erina giggled at that statement. She was always amazed at how her boyfriend could be when finding out where his next job's going to be. He would always show so much excitement, and as he was describing it to her over their multiple video calls, she would get infected by his enthusiasm, and become interested herself.

' _I always say this, but thanks Erina. I've never felt so accomplished in my life doing this, and it's all thanks to you. I never would have done this if not for you, so I want to say thanks.'_

Erina teared up, a sniffle could be heard from her.

' _If it wasn't for me, Sōma would have never decided to become like his father. He would have never started travelling. He never would have…_ ' Erina choked up at the thought. Maybe, if Sōma never travelled, he never would have died. Erina almost blamed herself again, that she was the reason that her love died. But she noted one important thing that Sōma said in the letter…

' _I've never felt so accomplished in my life…'_

' _That's right… Sōma would have only worked at his father's restaurant for the rest of his life. I… I gave him the opportunity to help so many. He did so much, and I helped him do all of that…_ ' Erina thought to herself.

Sōma would never want Erina to feel bad over this, because she did so much for him, and so many others as a result.

She smiled. Sadly, but she felt as though it was the brightest smile she ever did.

With newfound resolve, she continued on with the letter.

' _So I know you're expecting that I'd make some grand American feast, with barbeque, large foods, and everything like that. But this time, I'm doing something different. Now, I know you remember that promise I made to you all those years ago.'_

She smiled once again, remembering what that promise was.

'So look forward to this. Someday I'll make you say loud and clear… that you think my food is good. Even if it takes the best my cooking has to offer.'

She laughed softly. Oh, how those few words changed her entire life. While she did think certain dishes Sōma made were good, the two of them knew that just a few dishes weren't good enough for her. Sōma would expect rejection every time, and Erina would never fail to deliver. A combination of the standards Sōma put for any given dish made for the princess, in addition to her pride, would prevent her from saying those words he wanted to hear.

But what came out of those simple words, was a life she never expected, but one that she would never take back for anything.

' _Huh, now that I look at the date that I'm writing this, it would almost be 10 years to the date I made that promise. It's the 19_ _th_ _of April when I write this, and our 10 year anniversary of when I made that one promise is April 21.'_

Erina almost dismissed that date. But something about the day made her feel uneasy.

' _April 21_ _st_ _. What…?_ ' Erina's eyes widened, and she dashed to her room, letter in hand, to grab her tablet.

She checked the date, the day when her love came crashing down…

' _April 21, 20XX_

 _2:20 AM Talked for 1 Hour, 25 Minutes'_

The resolve she found shattered, and she fell to her knees, tears falling.

Erina broke again.

* * *

She didn't remember the exact day that the 92nd generation's opening ceremony took place. She remembered her grandfather's speech about how 99 percent of the students were just there to polish the remaining 1 percent. She remembered Sōma frankly idiotic speech about how everyone was just a stepping stone to him (although in retrospect, she did acknowledge that that did become true). Finally, she remembered Sōma's promise, that he would do everything to make herself say his food was good.

She remembered all of that… but the date escaped her memory…

* * *

Until now.

She never would have guessed that the day that the energetic, happy-go-lucky redhead passed on, would be the day that he made the promise that drove him to do the best. The promise he made to her. He spent the last 10 years of his life… all for her. All for a girl who at one point, thought he was nothing but some lucky low-life, some guy who never deserved to be in her presence.

She cried even harder. She didn't feel like she deserved to read the rest of the letter.

She had the thought in the back of her mind, that Sōma held no hard feelings for what she did. The words that he said to her, that he didn't want her to regret anything that happened between the two of them. She had those thoughts.

But instead of using those thoughts to comfort her, she had a different set of thoughts. One that hurt her instead…

'You aren't even worthy _of looking_ at the top.'

'Sōma Yukihira… This is my opportunity to rid Tōtsuki of you forever!'

Even if it was only half of their first year as classmates… she felt that those thoughts were unforgivable.

She treated him less than trash, and he treated her as nothing but a friend.

' _Sōma… why did you do so much for me… I never deserved you._ '

She clutched the paper in her hand, crying bitter tears.

* * *

In the kitchen, Megumi and Hisako were preparing the dish that Sōma left. When Megumi read the recipe name, she was both excited and shocked.

' _Why would Sōma-kun use this recipe?_ '

Hisako, on the other hand, was much less impressed.

"Yukihira Recipe 80: Tempura Fried Steak Omelette." Hisako said out loud. She then let out a sigh.

"Not surprised honestly. Sōma-kun always does basic recipes like this. I don't think Erina would say this is good enough, right Megumi…" Hisako turned her head to the blunette, who was still shocked over the name.

"Megumi-chan? Megumi-chan, what's wrong?" Hisako asked, a bit worried at her friend's expression.

Megumi snapped out of her shock. "T-t-t-t…" She stammered, shyly pointing to the recipe.

"What about the recipe?" Hisako asked curiously.

"T-that recipe… Sōma-kun was working on this r-recipe… for the last 10 years." Megumi nervously pointed out to the pinkette, who raised an eyebrow at that fact.

"Wait… what do you mean, "for the last 10 years"?" Hisako asked again, her curiosity further piqued.

' _For 10 years? Why the hell did Sōma-kun take that long for this?_ '

"I-I'm not really sure… whenever I asked him about it, he told me that i-it was for Nakiri-san." Megumi explained shyly.

' _For Erina? Spending 10 years on one dish, just for her. Why? Unless…_ ' Hisako then thought back to the night that she would remember forever. The day that Erina explained Sōma's final night in the world.

* * *

Flashback Start

* * *

" _N-no, i-it's ok. I'll… I'll tell you." Erina said softly, through the tears. She wanted to let Hisako know what happened to Sōma. After all, if it wasn't for the pinkette, she might not have ever been lucky enough to have Sōma as her boyfriend in the first place._

Hisako remembered all the details that Erina told her, as she did not pull any punches while retelling it. One part stuck out to her however.

" _He… he said that he was sending a letter. You know, the one that he always sends before leaving for a new place." Erina said to Hisako, who nodded, knowing what Erina meant._

 _All of Sōma's letters contained a letter, directed for his girlfriend, and a recipe card, directed at anyone who wasn't Erina. Most of the time, it was Hisako who got the recipe card, and Sōma said never to show Erina until after she tried the recipe._

 _The dishes were based off the last country he helped in. He used the cooking styles from said country, and formed a dish around it._

" _H-he told me… that if the dish truly was delicious… to go to his father, and tell him."_

 _"How come Erina?" Hisako asked._

 _"I_ _… I don't know. I wish I knew, but_ _… he wanted me to make sure I do so."_

* * *

Flashback End

* * *

Hisako's eyes widened, and she looked at Megumi.

"A-Arato-san?" Megumi questioned, a bit scared at how her friend was looking at her.

"We have to make this dish right. We have to." Hisako said, deadly serious.

"R-right!" Megumi said aloud, putting a fist in the air.

With that, the two friends got to preparing Sōma's last dish.

* * *

As the two finished up, the dish was looking very much so like a dish that Sōma would make.

A nice and light tempura batter, with a folded steak omelette in the middle, with a sauce on the side.

"Alright! It's done." Hisako said with a nod of her head. The bluenette beside her nodded as well.

"Yup! Let's go see Nakiri-san." Megumi replied, as the two walked out of the kitchen, Hisako holding the plate.

They walked out of the kitchen, into the living room, to see…

Nobody.

Because of the loud noises the pan was making while the steak was being seared, they missed Erina going up to her room.

"Hm, maybe Erina went upstairs to read the letter, to make herself comfortable." Hisako thought aloud.

"Maybe. Let's head to Nakiri-san's room." Megumi responded, and the two went upstairs, to see their friend.

When the two got to their Erina's room, however, they were not expecting to see the confident blonde on her knees, bawling.

Hisako quickly put down the plate of food on Erina's table, and rushed over to the girl.

"Arato-san? W-what's wrong with Nakiri-san?" Megumi asked, worriedly.

"I…I-I don't know. She hasn't cried this much since Sōma died…" Hisako responded sadly.

"Erina? We're here for you. Look! We have Sōma's dish for you." Hisako tried to comfort Erina.

"…" Erina muttered something under her breath.

"What was that, Erina?" Hisako questioned.

"…I don't deserve it." Erina muttered sadly, tears still flowing.

The other two girls' eyes widened in surprise.

"W-what do you mean, Nakiri-san?" Megumi asked.

"I never deserved to be called his girlfriend. I… I said and thought such horrible things to him… How did he put up with me? H-how did I get the privilege t-to be called his girlfriend?! There were so many more people who deserved it…" Erina cried, and then turned her head.

She saw a head of blue hair, and pointed at the owner of said hair.

"L-l-like you, T-tadokoro. Y-you supported him from day one, y-y-you were his cheerleader… why wasn't it you that he chose… why did he choose me instead?" Erina asked Megumi.

Erina wasn't even angry over the fact that Megumi was more deserving of the spot than her. In her emotionally strained mind, she only thought about what Megumi did for Sōma, and wondered why they were only best friends.

Megumi though, had no thoughts like that.

"Nakiri-san, I was fine to be Sōma-kun's best friend. I… I was as close to him as you were." Megumi said, not in her usual nervous mode, but in a more thoughtful manner.

"I might have seen him as more than that, but as time went on… I don't think it would have worked out as well as your relationship did. Now… I'm glad that we were so close… he was like a brother that I never had, and he pushed me so far as a chef and a person. I would have never been able to talk to you as a friend if I never met Sōma-kun." Megumi explained, doing her best to comfort Erina.

"B-but… y-you helped him so much…" Erina tried to counter her points, but the blunette cut her off.

"But you made him so happy." Megumi said, a small smile on her face. "You did for him what he did for me. And you two were the cutest couple I've ever seen. He could never stop talking about you, Nakiri-san. I don't think I would have made him as happy as you did. So you deserved him, because you guys needed each other." She finished, keeping her smile.

Erina stopped sniffling during Megumi's speech, and looked at her like a child being helped by their mother.

"Y-you really think so, Tadokoro?" Erina asked timidly.

"Absolutely." Megumi replied, an unusual confidence radiating off her.

"Now, I know Sōma-kun would want you to try his last dish. As his best friend, p-please do. He spent 10 years perfecting it… at least give him this." Megumi requested.

Erina simply nodded, and moved to her table, only to be met with the sight of…

A large portion of tempura.

Erina did what she always did for most of Sōma's dishes: heavily sigh.

' _I swear Sōma-kun, you can be really annoying at times._ ' She thought, dumbfounded.

"Well, Sōma-kun has done this before." She laughed sadly, slowly shaking her head.

She took her fork, and cut into the tempura batter. She smelled a strong beef flavour coming from the tempura, and looked at what was inside.

' _A steak omelette…_ ' She saw. She took some of the batter, the egg and the steak in her fork.

"Thanks for the food." She said, before putting it into her mouth.

She took a few bites, and was amazed.

The first thing she got was the crisp texture of the tempura, followed right by the omelette. It brought a very nice contrast of textures, the crunch of the batter and the fluffiness of the eggs, which was mixed with milk to create an airier texture.

She then tasted the steak. It was relatively simple, a bit of salt, pepper and cayenne. It had such a small kick to it that she was really able to taste the beef.

So why was there so much depth? There was a sweetness and spice that she tasted that she did not know.

So she took another bite, and found the source.

' _Hot sauce… and honey?_ ' she found such a combination to be very odd. The eggs were beaten with a bit of hot sauce, and the honey was added in as the eggs were cooking.

But it left such a nice flavour, the sweetness of the honey coating her tongue before the hot sauce covered it, creating an aftertaste that left her craving more.

Which she did. She took another bite of the tempura omelette, savouring the simple, yet indescribably amazing flavour she was getting.

Then she noticed the sauce. She was cautious, as she didn't want to ruin this already amazing flavour. But she had faith in her boyfriend, who always did something like this, and dipped her next forkful into the sauce.

The flavour somehow became even better.

It was as simple as the omelette itself, just some peanut butter mixed with cream, but the taste of the natural peanut butter created a contrast, adding a richness that was not there before.

This dish was unlike anything she tried before. It was so simple, yet when combined, made such an impact.

It was not only unlike anything, it was better than anything she had before.

She closed her eyes, savouring the taste.

 _…_

"So _…_ how was it?"

* * *

AN: Hey there everyone!

So I was hitting a big wall with the whole cooking thing.

If you notice, I cut out the entire recipe making, and only kept in Erina's reaction (which is in all honesty, not that good, and was just a bunch of flavours that can be good (seriously though, hot sauce and honey isn't too bad, and a peanut sauce can be cut down by the heat and acidity hot sauce brings. Try it out, I would.)).

While this series reignited my love for the culinary world, I can't say that I do that much cooking. Since I'm living with my parents, I get great meals cooked by my mom. The downside is that I don't get to cook much besides eggs, and sandwiches.

Which brings me to the dish I chose. I wasn't sure how to go about it, but after asking the Shokugeki subreddit, they said that Soma's best dish would be an egg dish, because of course the egg thing has to come full circle. So I went with an omelette, tempura style. Unrealistic? Sure, I'm not sure myself. You can probably use a blast chiller to freeze an egg dish, then dip it in some batter to fry it, sooo…

Otherwise, I'm pretty happy with the chapter. Emotional, like I wanted, and a cliffhanger, which I planned (don't worry, no more cliffhangers anymore) and while cooking was small and otherwise insignificant, it got across the point I wanted.

Now that the chapter stuff is out of the way, the future!

This story will end in (most likely) 2 chapters.

1 long ending, 1 epilogue.

This was such a great experience, and with Summer in full swing, I have a lot of time to write more stories! I plan to do more serious Shokugeki fics, and the ideas are just forming in my head.

I'm sad that this story is coming to an end soon, but I did what I always wanted to: create something that has never been done in this fandom.

(Also, unintentionally create the Erina I love to see (I like both her vain, arrogant side in canon, and the opposite in some fics I love, but I love the non-tsun, friendly Erina a bit more) and put her through an experience harder on her than Azami's training; not only losing, but seeing the person closest to her die.)

(Yes, I have a mind that is filled with sadness and fear, it's been a hard year for me, so I started to do creative writing to put my mind at ease. I'm so glad I did.)

But anyways, please leave a review on the chapter! I know it wasn't great (while I did get what I wanted across, I don't really know), so give me all the comments. I'll need them for future stories.

Thanks for reading, and I hope to see you again!

(P.S: I'm amazed at the amount of follows, favourites and reviews that this has gotten. It's not Nouvelle or Nisegami levels, them two are so talented, much more than I, but I'm glad that so many people decided to follow me through this! Thank you so much, readers!)


	6. Memories

Disclaimer: I don't own Shokugeki no Soma, just this story.

* * *

 _Last Chapter:_

 _It wasn't like anything she ate before… it was better._

 _Better than any recipe she tried when she was younger. Better than any dish that their friends made._

 _She didn't want to admit it… but it was better than her cooking._

 _Sōma spent the last 10 years of his life for this?_

 _Why did he?_

 _Despite all the encouragement from Tadokoro, she still doubted herself._

 _Did she deserve the luxury of having the last recipe that Sōma Yukihira made? Did she deserve his gift, his love, his care? She wasn't sure, and was a bit afraid at what the answer could be._

 _Despite all of that, however…_

 _She still wanted to savour the dish, and closed her eyes, doing her best to pick out all the distinct, yet harmonious flavours._

* * *

Megumi and Hisako were looking on, a bit nervous. Erina was taking a long time in trying the dish. They decided to voice their concerns.

"Um… Nakiri-san seems to be really liking it, isn't she?" Megumi asked.

"Yeah, I've never seen her take this long tasting… anything" Hisako replied.

"She seems to be enjoying it though… maybe he did it!" Megumi excitedly said, a bit quiet as to not disturb Erina.

"Yeah, hopefully so. She really does though." Hisako responded. Then a thought entered her head.

"By the way Megumi-chan…" Hisako called.

"Yes? What is it Arato-san?"

"Sōma-kun told you about all the recipes he made for Erina, right?" the pinkette asked. The blunette nodded in response.

"Yup! He came to me for advice. I-I don't know why though, I'm not that great…" She explained. At the last thing she said, Hisako looked at Megumi with a frown.

"Megumi-chan… You know you're a good cook. I mean, you graduated with us." Hisako chided.

"But I wouldn't have done it without Sōma-kun's help." Megumi waved her hands in denial. Hisako let out a sigh.

"We talked about this, Megumi-chan. Sōma-kun even told you that he only helped you get some confidence. After the Autumn Elections, everyone said that you were great. You became one of the elite ten, for god's sake! Sōma-kun didn't help you do that, that was all you!" Hisako said, ending her talk with a smile. Megumi rubbed the back of her head.

"Y-you think so?"

"Of course I do!" Hisako said excitedly, putting an arm around her friend. "You're a great chef, Megumi-chan."

Megumi had a small blush at the praise being thrown at her. "T-thanks, Arato-san."

As the two friends finished up their conversation, Erina put her fork and knife down, and Megumi and Hisako went up to the blonde.

"So… how was it?" Hisako asked.

Erina turned to look at her two friends.

"That was what Sōma-kun worked on for the last ten years?" Erina asked quietly, the question directed at Megumi.

At the question, Megumi and Hisako froze.

"Um… Y-yes, I-I saw him work on t-the dish at Tōtsuki after h-he cooked dinner for us at Polar Star." Megumi explained nervously.

"Did… did you not like it, Erina?" Hisako asked, also feeling nervous.

"N-no… it's not that I didn't…" Erina started. Hisako and Megumi let out a sigh of relief.

"I-it's just that... I-I can't believe he worked so hard for me." The blonde continued, a small smile on her face.

"This dish… is perfect." Erina simply stated, which made Megumi and Hisako widen their eyes.

"I-I-I've never had a dish this amazing, from anyone. All the chefs in the world, you guys, our friends… even me." Erina explained further, her voice quieting down as she said it was better than her cooking.

"S-so does that mean…"

"Erina, so you're saying that…"

Erina nodded, tears forming in her eyes. "Yes… this dish was…"

"Delicious."

Megumi and Hisako wore the biggest smiles on their faces, as they wrapped their arms around Erina, forming a big hug between the three.

"YES! I knew Sōma-kun could do it!" Megumi cheered.

"I can't believe it. But… I'm glad he did." Hisako said, looking at her best friend.

"Yeah… I-I'm glad too." Erina whispered, crying a bit. She looked towards her pink-haired friend.

"Hisako, no work tomorrow… we have to go to Restaurant Yukihira." Erina said, feeling glad that she fulfilled the promise her loving boyfriend worked so hard on.

"Yup… we have to see what Jōichirō-san has for you." Hisako replied, the smile on her face brightening.

"Y-yes… I actually don't know what Sōma-kun left for you, Nakiri-san, so I'm excited to see what it is." Megumi added on.

"Alright. I think we've spent enough time staying up. Let's go to sleep." Erina tiredly said.

"Yeah, let's." Hisako said, with a yawn. Megumi just nodded sleepily.

So Hisako and Megumi went back to their rooms, while Erina went to her bed, and plopped down onto it.

Erina let out a long sigh.

' _I can't believe he did it…_ 'she happily thought to herself as she dozed off, very happy for her redheaded idiot boyfriend. And she should've rested easy. After all this time, she finally gave her late boyfriend the confirmation he was hoping for, and she would finally see what he would have done to celebrate the occasion with all her friends.

However, what should have been a dream turned into a nightmare she never wanted.

* * *

Mini A/N: I just want to clarify, if you see italics, that's a flashback.

* * *

Erina saw her younger self walking the halls of Tōtsuki, with Hisako by her side. The way her younger self walked instantly reminded her of what this day was, and she had a small smile on her face.

" _Hello, I am Erina Nakiri, and I'll be your examiner for this Entrance Exam. Now, instead of interviews, I will instead allow you to make one dish. If you can please my palate… I will allow you entrance into Tōtsuki." Her face broke into a devilish grin as she saw a group of about 50 people cower in fear._

" _However… you can withdraw from the test, and try again at a later time… if you leave in the next minute."_

 _At the last word, the group ran away as fast as they could, leaving a grinning Erina and an expressionless Hisako._

The older blonde was giggling to herself, amazed at how feared she really was. She never had a full idea of her influence in the culinary world, but seeing this really made her understand her how strong her hold was. She was looking on, waiting for the memory to continue on.

" _So… we can make anything right?"_

There it was. She turned her head to see a younger version of the man she had the privilege to call her boyfriend.

He was wearing simple pants and a sweater, with a shirt branding the Restaurant Yukihira logo and his headband currently wrapped around his wrist. His hair was as spiky as ever, and was an even more vibrant red.

"… _As long as eggs are the main ingredient, yes. Would you still like to accept?" Erina asked coldly._

Sōma just grinned, that grin that made her weak in the knees after all these years. It was so full of confidence, that she couldn't help but smile.

" _Of course. It shouldn't be too hard to make you say my dish is good." Sōma said confidently._

It was such a contrast between the two. The cold, unforgiving princess, and the confident, happy-go-lucky commoner. She was astonished at the fact that they ever became a couple. But love was unpredictable, and she would consider her case as a prime example. Would she take it back? Absolutely not.

 _Erina looked at the profile for Sōma. Once again, she grinned devilishly._

" _Alright then. I might taste your dish. Surely, you can show me the food from the bottom of the culinary world, right? I don't want to be disappointed." She said mockingly._

 _Sōma twitched at the statement._

 _He then took the cloth wrapped around his wrist, and put it on his head._

" _I can tell you that you won't be. Just you wait and see, Miss Test Judge." Sōma stated._

Now, her younger self never saw Sōma twitch. The action was so subtle that it would have been over by the time you blinked.

For Erina though, time seemed to go in slow-motion. She looked into Sōma's eyes. Those golden pools of warmth that she always found herself lost in, those eyes that always calmed her down. Those eyes, for just a second, held an emotion that she never saw in him.

 **Anger.**

The food that Sōma spent his entire life up to that point making. The food that he was so proud of.

Erina called it food from the bottom of the culinary world. Food that wasn't in her perfect world, food that she felt no need to look at.

She was hurt.

Not hurt because of the expression Sōma gave her. While it did sadden her that Sōma made that expression, she knew that she deserved it. Anyone would be angry if they were disregarded because of their cooking. For Sōma especially, who prided himself on his cooking, she felt like it would have been odd not to react that way, even considering how non-reactive her boyfriend was normally.

She was hurt because it was her that caused it. It was her that made her best friend like this.

 _As Sōma was cooking, Erina went up to him, curious as to what he was making._

" _Yukihira. What dish are you making?" Erina asked, although it sounded more like a demand. Sōma let out a giggle._

" _Really? You don't know? You've seen me doing this the entire time!" he let out in between laughs._

" _S-shut up! I want to know if this dish is worthy of tasting!" Erina explained forcefully. She did not want to let some simple dish grace her tongue._

" _Fine, I'll tell you. This is Restaurant Yukihira's secret menu item 8! Furikake Rice." Sōma proudly said._

 _The only sounds heard after that was the sound of food cooking._

 _Erina slammed her hand down. "WHAT A JOKE! Clearly this dish isn't worthy of my tasting!" She exclaimed._

" _Now hold on, hold on. It's not just Furikake Rice. It's 'Transforming' Furikake Rice." Sōma said to the girl._

" _Transforming Furikake Rice?" Erina asked, dumbfounded._

" _Yup. It's almost done, just wait for a bit, will ya?"_

 _After a few more minutes, he presented the dish…_

 _Which was just a bowl of eggs._

 _Erina blankly stared at the dish in front of her._

" _I refuse. This dish is nowhere near worthy of my tongue. You fail. This test is over. You're just like I thought… some second-rate chef with a third-rate dish. You must be insane to think that I would try this plebeian dish." Erina stated, as Sōma looked on, unimpressed._

" _But you haven't seen the dish in full." He countered, making a confused Erina turn towards him. He had a smile on his face the entire time._

Erina looked at the way he was teasing her younger self. He was so happy, like what she told him didn't hurt him at all.

But… it did, right?

He couldn't have been this good at hiding it. Most people would be bitter, act coldly towards her. What did Sōma do? Tease her, get her excited, challenge her expectations. He did everything he could to annoy her, a smile on his face the entire time.

Erina was confused. She couldn't tell if he just ignored it, or if he took it to heart, but hid it behind that smile.

But before she could dwell any longer on this thought, the scene shifted.

The scene brought some peace back to her mind.

April 21.

Their entrance ceremony. The day he made one promise. The day that Erina and Sōma were linked by the red string of fate.

 _Sōma just returned to the back, after delivering his… divisive opening speech. He was walking away, oblivious to the harsh words being thrown at him by the crowd._

" _Whew, thought I would mess up. Glad I didn't though, I would have looked like an idiot!" Sōma thought to himself out loud. He turned his head, and met the glare of purple._

" _Oh, it's you, Eri… or something like that, right? You were the judge at the entrance exam!" He started, unaware of the princess' growing anger._

" _How was that? I didn't look dumb, right? I just want to make- "_

" _WHO GIVES A CRAP ABOUT THAT? WHY THE HELL ARE YOU HERE, YUKIHIRA?" She yelled at the redhead, pointing at him._

" _Huh? What do you mean? I got the acceptance letter from the school, why wouldn't I be here?" He grinned, which made the blonde curl her fist in anger._

" _You know, you really scared me with the whole "your food was disgusting" and all that other stuff. You didn't have to hide the fact that you liked it, y'know?" Sōma nonchalantly said to the girl. She flipped her hair back in response._

" _I-I-I did not! And this doesn't mean anything! I don't accept you or your subpar cooking!" She yelled at Sōma, confusing him._

" _You only got in because someone messed up. "Top spot of Tōtsuki", huh? Don't make me laugh! All the students here spent 3 years in Tōtsuki's junior high program, having top-level knowledge in gastronomy. You? Some commoner from a "normal" school? Someone as low as you doesn't deserve to even look at the top, let alone get there. You'll be expelled before the end of your first year." She ranted, walking past him._

 _Sōma took a second, before turning his head towards the retreating princess._

" _3 years of junior high, huh?" He said flatly._

 _Erina noticed, and turned her head back. "What?"_

" _I've had 12 years experience. I've held a knife since I was three!" He said, his smirk back in full force._

" _You think I'm just going to let you say my food is disgusting? Yeah right. You saying that is like dragging the good name of my family's restaurant through the dirt."_

 _He turned towards Erina, pointing at her._

" _So listen here, Nakiri. One day… you will taste my food. And you will say it's good. Even if I have to use everything I know… it will happen. Just you wait."_

Erina was watching the scene unfold. Every time she saw the scene, she would get chills down her spine. The way Sōma said his promise so confidently, the way he made her younger self nervous… it always brought a smile to her face.

She looked into his eyes, wanting to see the fire, the determination in those golden irises that put a smile on her face.

But behind that fire lied…

 **Bitterness.**

When he made that promise, he was grinning. But behind that grin, he was deadly serious, and in those eyes, she saw that he wanted to prove a point.

But before she could even think about what said point was, the scene switched again.

Her and Sōma were in her car, on the way back from the Training camp in their first year.

" _What's with you, Yukihira? Why are you spouting crap like "I gained the experience of failing"?" She said mockingly._

" _That's just some lame excuse. Chefs are not allowed to fail."_

 _Sōma just looked at the blonde, a small frown on his face._

" _Really now?" Sōma asked._

" _Of course! Gourmet food always strives for excellence, as that's what the people at the table expect! Just like his food…" Erina explained. She whispered out the last part, not loud enough for Sōma to hear._

Erina frowned when she saw her boyfriend do the same. She knew now that chefs are allowed to fail. But what does she know?

Her God's tongue let her taste the culinary arts of the world, and know every single ingredient in it. Her coming from the Nakiri name meant her cooking skills were always going to be top notch. She could make a flawless dish without even trying. She couldn't fail, her upbringing made her so.

Compared to Sōma, who was always taking failures in stride, using it to further his skills. It was just like his father, and she knew how much of an impact he had on her. Sōma told her after seeing one of his failures that his dad did the same thing, and the thought shocked her. Jōichirō Saiba, one of the best chefs in the world, could make dishes as bad as his son's? But he then explained why they did so. It was so that they could test out new ideas.

This realization saddened Erina. Who was she to criticize failure, if it brings so much good, and if she couldn't realize it herself?

She was expecting another scene. Something else that happened between the two of them, and the hidden feelings behind the teasing, questions and hasty replies.

All she saw instead was white.

She let out a long sigh, and sat down, trying to reflect on her newfound knowledge.

"Sōma…" She started thinking out loud. "Sōma got… he got angry with me. I said so many bad things to him. He put up with so much… and he smiled through the pain. He put up with me… and even became my first love…" She smiled sadly.

She hated her father even more now. Because of him, she spent half a year judging Sōma. If she wasn't so cold and dismissive of the redhead, maybe she could have known him better much sooner. Maybe they would have started dating before their third year, leaving so much more time for themselves. Maybe he wouldn't have left, meaning they would live happily, ruling the culinary world together. Not only did she lessen the time they had, she unknowingly hurt him in the process. While it didn't seem like a long time, Erina felt like it lasted for their entire high school lives.

Even if she hated her father for putting those tainted morals into her head, however, she couldn't blame anyone but herself. How could she claim that she loved Sōma with all her heart, when she caused him so much pain? She showed him nothing but contempt and hatred, judging his practices, morals, and worth.

The thought brought tears to her eyes. She could only see those eyes of anger, of bitterness. She judged so much about him, but without those, the Sōma she loved wouldn't have existed. The determination, the creativity, the love he put into his food… it would have been all but gone without those practices.

It took his creativity to save her from her father in the first place. She would have been forever scared of her father if Sōma didn't break that wall down with his tempura don. And all she did was say that it didn't matter. People demand perfection, not love, she thought. How foolish.

"All I did was insult him. All I did was make him save me from my father." She was crying now, bitter tears that was the result of the pain she caused the person who she was supposed to support, supposed to love, supposed to care about. "H-how… how could he love me? How could he love someone who didn't care for him?"

She sat there, crying tears she didn't feel like she deserved to. If anything, Sōma should have cried. He was the one who was hurting, so why did he never show it? Why was she the one who cried for the both of them?

But when she felt a pair of arms wrap around her, she stopped. She opened her eyes, and was met with a breathtaking sight.

A beautiful garden, with various herbs and vegetables growing. She realized that she was in the backyard of a house. It was a small house, wood being the main material, but it was still a sight to behold. And when she looked at who was holding her, she could only jump in shock.

"S…Sōma?"

"Hey Erina!"

* * *

A/N: Hey everyone!

First of all, I'm so, so sorry for not putting this up sooner! (づᗒ╭╮ᗕ)づ (づᗒ╭╮ᗕ)づ (づᗒ╭╮ᗕ)づ

It's been over a month since the last chapter, and you guys have been waiting a long time. You guys even got this story to over 60 follows and 50 favourites over the absence! I'm so thankful, but so sorry!

I'm guessing you guys want an explanation, and I'm more than willing to give the best explanation I can. The gist of it is was that I had a very hard time writing this chapter.

Not because I didn't know what to say. While this chapter is noticeably shorter than the last, I knew what I wanted to talk about. There were 2 main things I planned to happen from the start of this story: Soma's death, and what will happen at the start of the next chapter. (I know, I said no more cliffhangers, I'm a liar. Sorry!)

The problem I was having was how I wanted Erina to take this. If you look back at the chapters I flashed back to (ch 2, ch 4, and ch 34), Soma has some pretty interesting facial expressions. They could be taken a couple of ways, but the way I went with is a more bitter feeling, Soma never showing his true expressions for long, hiding it from Erina sees them, I couldn't think whether to drive the point home further.

A plan was that while Erina was silently reflecting, someone (younger self, something like that) would tell her that Soma is someone who she shouldn't have bothered wasting her life on. Because of her love for the guy, she would defend herself, but being pained as the other voice tells her all the shit she put him through. That would eventually lead to her breaking down, and the ending of this chapter would come again.

But, I just went with her doing some self-reflection, doubting her self-worth, and if she really did care enough for Soma. I had at least 5 ideas on how this could have gone, some written, some not, but every time, I would delete it, thinking that it didn't get the point across enough. This kept going for the month until the version you read existed. In all honesty, I don't know how to feel about how this version of the chapter, but I felt like it was finally good enough.

Now, I know that this isn't the grand chapter you guys were expecting after the month of waiting, and again, I'm sorry. But the next chapter will be the end.

The couple's final talk, what Soma's gift to Erina would be, it will end next chapter. I don't know if people will continue in the whole tragedy thing, as honestly, I wrote this so I could see at least 1 Sorina fic have a not entirely happy ending. Tragedy is a genre not for all people, but because of how much I love the genre, I wanted my first story to have it.

But after all that rambling, I have to say: please leave a review! I send a PM to every reviewer I get, thanking them for the review and giving replies to whatever they say in the review. So if you have any questions, ideas for future stories, whatever, I'm all ears! Just leave a review, and I'll get back to you. Critiques and compliments are something I love to see, and inspire me to get to writing, so please! If you want, review! As long as there's no flaming, it does nothing but help! (That's also a warning: No flaming, or you will not get a PM. You will also be reported, I will not have assholes leave reviews that do nothing but hate.)

And speaking of future stories, the other big reason why this took so long is because I'm in the middle of another story! Another Sorina fic, but a oneshot this time. I don't want to spoil what it's about, but I can at least say that it's not fluff... again. I actually have one of my reviewers helping me out with it this time as well! (thanks nagitochris!)

So after that long AN... thanks for reading, and I hope to see you again!


	7. Closure

Disclaimer: I don't own Shokugeki no Soma, just this story.

* * *

"S…Sōma?"

"Hey Erina!"

Erina looked at the redhead in shock.

"Sōma…"

"Yup, it's me- "he was interrupted by a swift smack to the head.

Releasing his hands from his girlfriend and clutching the place where she hit him, Sōma looked at the blonde, a bit annoyed.

"Oi, what did you do- "

"SŌMA, YOU IDIOT!" She screamed at him.

"… huh?" Was all the boy could get out, in his state of confusion.

"You can't just come back and just say "Hey Erina!" like nothing happened!" She scolded. Her eyes went soft, and she started sniffling.

"But… but… you're back… you're here again. I missed you so… so, so much…" She whispered, a small smile on her face, tears starting to run down. She was stunned that Sōma was with her again, and she wanted this moment to last forever.

"I MISSED YOU, SŌMA!" She then broke down, crying into the already outstretched arms of her best friend. He started rubbing her back and head.

"I missed you too Erina. I really did." Sōma replied quietly, crying a little bit as well. He was so glad to see his princess once more, and be able to feel her crying into his chest. While it hurt, it was nice to see.

The two of them stayed like that for what felt like an hour, Erina crying her heart out into Sōma's chest, while he was comforting her by doing the actions she loved. How couldn't they? Sōma was ripped from this world just a few weeks ago, and it left such a lasting impact not just on Erina, but the entirety of their friends.

After another hour, Erina was able to calm down, and think a bit more clearly.

' _Wait… if Sōma-kun is alive…!_ '

"Sōma?" Erina asked quietly, her face still buried in Sōma's chest.

"Hmm?" He responded, letting her know that he was listening.

"Do… do you want to see Hisako and Tadokoro?" She asked.

At that, Sōma froze.

' _Huh? Does she not realize that this is her dream?_ ' he thought confused.

"Well, o-of course I would, but- "Erina suddenly got up, and grabbed his hand.

"Well come on then Sōma! We have to see them!" She said, trying to walk. She was stopped however, when the hand she was holding didn't move with her.

"Sōma? You don't want to?" She asked, confusion and a bit of hurt visible on her face. Not wanting Erina to take the message the wrong way, he shook his other hand profusely.

"No, I do, but- "

"Well come on then!" She said, tears forming again and voice cracking. ' _Does he not care about his friends anymore?_ ' she was scared.

Sōma let out a sigh. "Erina." She stopped to look at him. "I need to explain something to you. Can you sit and let me?" He asked calmly, not wanting to offend his girlfriend.

Erina was visibly dejected, but nodded her head. "O-ok then…" she sat down, and let Sōma wrap an arm around her shoulders. She leaned into his shoulder, resting her head atop it.

"How do I explain this…" Sōma started. Erina was silent, waiting for his response. She wanted to hear his excuse for not wanting to see his friends.

"Jeez Erina, you know I'm not that mean right?" Sōma replied. Erina put a hand over her mouth. Did she say that out loud?

"Yeah, you did. Oh! I got one." Sōma said.

"Alright. What is it, Sōma?" Erina asked, a bit coldly, still feeling sad about him not wanting to see his friends.

Sōma sighed again. "Well… I don't know if you know this, or if you just forgot. But right now… this is a dream."

Erina deflated at the realization. ' _Oh… all those memories were me dreaming…_ '

Despite the realization, she wanted to make sure of what she was seeing.

"So… you're still d… you're still gone?" She choked.

"Yeah… I'm still dead." Sōma said bluntly, making his girlfriend sniffle.

"But… but why are you here?" Erina asked nervously.

"Jeez, tired of your boyfriend already? That's mean Erina." Sōma teased, faking a hurt expression. Sōma wanted to lighten the mood for his princess. But all that got him was a light hit to the head.

"I didn't mean it like that!" she said, looking a bit angrily at Sōma. But that anger quickly softened. "It's just… shouldn't you be… shouldn't you be in heaven or something?"

"Well, yeah, I think so. I mean, I have the halo." He said pointing up at said ring of light. "But… I think I got one last chance to be with you, I guess." He shrugged. Sōma wasn't entirely sure what the reason was for him coming into Erina's dreams, but whatever it was, he was certainly grateful.

"So, when I wake up…" Erina drifted off, scared at the implications.

"…I'll never be able to talk to you again." Sōma finished. He didn't want to give Erina false hope for something that would inevitably happen.

"…Yeah." Erina said, tears forming. "Can… can we just stay like this, Sōma?" She then asked.

Sōma put on the warmest smile she ever saw from him, and let out a small laugh. "Of course we can, Erina. I like seeing you not hit me." His smile turned into the grin she loved so much.

Erina let out a small giggle, and a playful punch on his shoulder. "Oh, shut up, you idiot."

She felt so happy in this moment. Here she was, living in a peaceful world with the love of her life. Nothing would come and harm them, and they could just be in the other's presence. That calmed Erina down immensely.

But… this wouldn't last forever. Eventually, she would have to open her eyes. Eventually, her dream will fade away. Eventually… Sōma would be out of her reach.

The redhead who came into her life, annoyed her, teased her, cared for her, loved her… after she wakes up, he won't be there, calling her. She wouldn't get any more letters, any more kisses, hugs, dinners… she won't have him in her life.

She started crying again. Sōma didn't mind, as he knew she was trying to handle a lot of issues and emotions. All he had to worry about was her. Just her…

So he did what felt right. He held her close, and comforted her the best he could.

Erina could only think about how unfair it was to her best friend. Now to be fair, Sōma did some pretty dumb stuff. Like constantly putting his place at Tōtsuki, and even his career up multiple times in shokugekis. Erina would give him a stern lecture at how reckless he would be, and how she wouldn't want that to happen to him. Most of those took place during their second year however, and Erina wasn't totally sure about her feelings for Sōma at the time. So instead, she said that he would sadden his friends, in order to hide the fact that she would be depressed if he left as well.

He also gave poor Megumi (as well as their other friends from time to time) those horrible "test dishes" that would scar anyone who tried it. Fortunately for their group of friends, that stopped soon after he and Erina started dating, but it didn't change the fact that it was still mean and idiotic.

Despite those flaws though…

Sōma was one of the nicest people in her life. Besides Megumi, who was nice because of her shy nature, Sōma truly treated everyone like his friend. No matter who it was, Sōma treated them kindly. Former elite ten members, scouts for restauranteurs, they were treated to Sōma's hospitality and care. Not to mention the amazing work he did for up and coming or struggling restaurants in his tour around the world. The effort and care he put into his work inspired so many, and the dishes he gave them only helped to inspire them more.

He didn't just help those he did during his final few years. That seemed to be there ever since first coming to Tōtsuki. It was thanks to Sōma that Megumi found her confidence and became one of the top chefs at the school. Sōma did so much for his friends, family, school… and Erina herself.

She would always be grateful to Sōma, as so much of her life was changed because of him. She was able to repair her relationship with Alice. He helped her start _La Belle Vie_. He broke her out of her father's influence. He contributed the most in shaping who Erina was as a chef and person.

He helped do so much good in the world… why couldn't he be around to see it?

Why was he taken out of the world in such a cruel and heartless manner?

Why couldn't they be together their entire lives?

Erina Nakiri and Sōma Yukihira, taking on the world together, ruling the culinary industry as Japan's "Power Couple".

Erina mentally laughed at that. Sōma would never want so much fame. His father, her idol, Jōichirō Yukihira, didn't want the fame either. That's why he opened up that diner. Sōma would have just wanted to live a peaceful life with Erina, her managing _La Belle Vie_ , him managing Restaurant Yukihira. He would have wanted to be away from the spotlight, and she wouldn't have minded at all.

But besides all that… Sōma was here one last time… she wanted to know some stuff.

"Sōma?" She asked quietly, not wanting to ruin the moment.

"Hmm?" He replied again.

"If… if you were still here… what do you think would have happened?" She continued, her crying mostly finished. She was curious as to what Sōma would have wanted.

"Well… that's tough to say, I guess. I mean, I never would have guessed that this would be the last time I would be able to talk to you." Sōma explained with a somber expression.

Erina sniffled. "Yeah… I thought you would have been with me forever…"

"I thought the same. But that's life I guess." Sōma let out a small, sad laugh.

"Did… were you planning to come back soon?" Erina softly spoke, moving her eyes to look at her love. She saw a smile.

"Yeah… that's why the recipe I sent was so important." He recalled.

"Hm? What… what do you mean, Sōma?"

"Well… I was planning to surprise you." He smiled a bit wider.

"Surprise?" She asked curiously.

"Yup! I was going to finish up in Turkey… and come home." He finished, looking at Erina.

Erina's eyes widened, and tears were starting to form in her eyes. "Really?"

Sōma let out a chuckle. "Of course. As cool and life-changing as it was to learn so much new stuff, I was getting homesick. I wanted to work at the restaurant, try something at yours… and come back to everyone, ya know?"

"Y-yeah…" Erina was choking up. She was imagining the scene in her head.

Being at home, when the door would ring. She wouldn't answer, probably swamped with work. But Hisako would, and when she did, she would let Sōma in after giving him a big hug, and let him walk up to Erina's' room. He would knock, she would say "Come in." He would say nothing, but wrap her arms around her.

"I'm home." He would say, and she would widen her eyes in pure joy and excitement. She would give him the biggest hug, and give him a kiss that had the passion of 7 years worth of love and safety. It would have been the start of a new chapter in their lives: the start of their eternal happiness.

"T-that would've… t-that would have been nice…" She was crying, saddened that that scene would be nothing more than a "what if?"

Sōma didn't say anything for a while, wanting his best friend to let out all her emotions. After everything that happened to her, she deserved it.

After a while, however, Sōma wanted to make sure that his princess found out everything she wanted before their eventual final goodbye. "Erina?"

She was still busy crying over their lost time, the time they lost together due to the unfortunate events that happened to the redhead.

Sōma smiled gently, a big change from his usual big grins and smirks. "Erina. Do you love me?"

And just like always, she snapped out of her crying to turn to him, nodding furiously.

"O-o-o-o-of course I do Sōma! I love you so much! I love you more than you can believe." She said worriedly, like she always did.

Sōma let out a small laugh. It was so cute that without fail, she would stop whatever she was doing, and respond so cutely. It brought a smile to his face.

"Did you have anything else you wanted to know?" He asked.

Erina thought about it for a minute, before nodding her head.

"Alright, what's up?"

"Um… when you… when you died…" she let out a sniffle at that. It was never going to be easy to say or hear that Sōma truly was gone. "when you died… what were you sorry for?"

' _I'm so sorry…'_

Those words haunted her every day since Sōma's passing. She tried to push it to the back of her mind, but at some point, it would come back, and she would have to stop working, and start crying. She had no idea what Sōma meant, and she thought that she never would find out what he meant, and live a life of regret and confusion. Now that she had that last chance, she wouldn't let it go.

Sōma let out a sigh. "Well, I was thinking back to everything that happened before… I died." He started.

"I spent so much of my life away from everyone, travelling around the world. While it was fun, I only saw our friends for a little bit. Maybe a chance meeting when I was in a country, but other than that? Just over video chat. Never in person."

He then looked at her. "And you… I never got to see you in person since I left. You, Hisako, Tadokoro… I never saw you guys again, because you guys stayed in Japan."

The hand that wasn't around Erina started shaking, and the grip on her shoulder tightened a little. "I just… I just wanted to hold you guys once more, ya know? I wanted to… I wanted to hug you, kiss you. There was so much I wanted to do… and I… I couldn't. So… I'm so sorry. T-to all of you guys. I can't be there when one of you guys get married, or… or when you have children… I can't hold them, can't cook for them… I'm sorry for not being able to feel you guys anymore."

Sōma was lightly crying, but for Erina, it felt like she was seeing her heart break in front of her. She was crying for so long, but she wanted to support her love.

"I-it's ok Sōma. I know… I know that everyone would want you to be there too. But they know that you're always there… in spirit." She comforted, not wanting to see Sōma cry. She was crying herself, as seeing the normally strong redhead look so vulnerable saddened her.

"Yeah… yeah, I know. It's just that… I just wanted to see my friends look so happy."

The two of them cried for a bit longer before going into silence.

In this silence, Erina thought back. Back to those memories she had at the start of her dream.

"Sōma?" she asked, very cautious. She wanted to know everything.

"Hmm?" He replied.

"Um… don't lie to me about this, ok?"

"… Ok? I don't know what you're asking, Erina." Sōma asked, confused.

"…" She was scared to ask about this, as she was scared that Sōma would still hold that grudge; that Sōma would still be angry at her.

"Erina?"

"When we… when we first met… were you angry with me?" She asked meekly.

"… So you saw that, huh?" He chuckled dryly.

"Yeah. I… I had a nightmare. Or was it a dream? I… I don't know. But I saw you look angry… and it scared me. I never saw you like that in my life, but I saw that… and I was disappointed in myself." She started to tear up. "I was so mean to you, I insulted you, ignored you, a-a-a-and so much more. Y-yet you… you still acted happy around me." Erina started to cry freely now. "You gave me so much, and I… I was nothing but a burden to you! I hurt you! You saved me from my father, and you didn't even have to! You cared so much for me, and all I did was take the care! How did I win your heart?! I didn't deserve you! I still- "

She was cut off by Sōma turning her head and kissing her. She was crying, but the warmth of his lips on hers made her melt into the kiss, as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

After they eventually broke the kiss to catch their breath, Erina looked at Sōma in a timid manner. Sōma looked at Erina with a warm smile.

"Erina. Let's talk, ok?" He asked warmly. Erina simply nodded, and lied down, her head on Sōma's lap.

"Well, I have to say that yeah, I was angry at you at the entrance exam." Sōma stated, looking out into the garden. He didn't want to dance around the problem. Erina already saw it anyway.

"I mean, I loved serving at the diner. Everyone was so happy eating, that I felt like my food was great. Also, you know pops. He told me that if I couldn't graduate from Tōtsuki, then I could never be better than him." He then looked down at the blonde in his lap.

"So when you said my food was at the bottom of the culinary world… it hurt. Some girl insulting me without trying my food first? That was harsh."

Erina was tearing up. So that look was true. He was angry with her, he was hurt over her words. She was feeling sick. Sick of her old self.

"But… why did you hide it? Y-you still acted so happy, you were teasing me… but you were in pain." Erina asked.

Sōma let out a chuckle. "Well, I had to at least have a chance of making it, and I don't think snapping at the examiner would help my chances." He teased, which got a small smile from Erina.

"But… why did you do so much for me? The entrance ceremony, you made that promise to me. Looking back, whenever I see that, I feel so happy. That was the start of our relationship, from rivals, to friends, to lovers." She took Sōma's hand, and squeezed it. "And you helped me against my father. You didn't have to do that, and honestly, I never expected you to after how badly I treated you. So… why?"

That was the one thing she desperately wanted to know. Despite her treatment of him, he helped her through everything. But… why?

"I guess… because you were my inspiration." He said sheepishly.

Erina's eyes widened. "What? W-w-what do you mean by that?"

"I mean, you did get me to make that promise to you. And I worked so hard ever since then, trying to make you say my food was delicious. You inspired me to try so many things in cooking, and it was all done to try and make you say my food was good."

Erina's heart warmed at those words. But she had doubts.

"But how about Tadokoro-san? She was as close to you as I am, and unlike me, she supported you. I thought you would have chosen her long before choosing me."

"Well she was more like my sister. Supporting me to do my best, always being there for me. But you challenged me. I love Tadokoro, but she could never challenge my skills like you could."

Erina was still skeptical. "I just feel like I'm not worthy of having you as my lover." She explained meekly.

Sōma frowned. "Don't you ever think like that Erina." Sōma lifted her up, and looked her straight in the eyes.

"You were the most important part of my life. I never would have become the chef or person I was if it wasn't for you. While you did hurt me, you gave me hope. Hope that one day, you would say my food is good, and thinking about that would always make me so happy. Not just that, but you, Erina. You made me so happy. Being with you was the best time of my life. You made me laugh, smile, love… You did all of that Erina, and I can't thank you enough."

"Sōma…" Erina was crying, but instead of tears of pain, they were tears of joy. All her doubts were melting away, forming the strongest bond the two shared. Love. And nothing would take that away from them.

"So let me say this: I was only angry at you because I didn't know why you were so mean to me. After I learned what your father did to you… it made sense. And I regretted ever being angry at you. Your father was the mean one, not you. You just were caught in the crossfire. After I learned that, I wanted to help you in anyway that I could. And look at us now. I guess I did help." He grinned, and Erina gave Sōma a teary-eyed smile, a smile filled with relief, happiness and love.

"D-do you really mean that?" Erina asked, although she already knew the answer.

"Of course. I love you, Erina Nakiri. Do you love me?" He replied, and like always, Erina nodded.

"O-o-of course I do. I love you too, Sōma Yukihira." She responded, and the two closed the distance between each other with a loving kiss.

With that kiss, Erina had no doubts. Sōma loved her, despite her harsh treatment towards him. She could go to sleep happily, knowing that Sōma would put that aside, that Sōma would love her forever.

When they parted, Erina looked at Sōma dreamily. "T-thank you Sōma. I see now."

"Good. Besides, that was for only what, half a year? I think 7 years of being together has a lot more impact than just a few months." He grinned. Erina giggled.

"Yeah, but it was pretty mean." Erina was about to start, but feeling a hand on her head made her stop.

"No, no, no. I'm ok with it. I mean, if you weren't so harsh, I might not have made that promise to you, and we might not have started dating. So stop thinking like that, ok?" Sōma chided.

Erina nodded her head. "Ok. I love you and you love me!"

Sōma gave her a hug. "That's what I wanted to hear."

As they were hugging, Sōma spoke.

"So… did you get my letter?"

Erina nodded.

"Did you try the omelette?"

She nodded again.

"How was it?"

Erina contemplated teasing him by denying it, even though that was a lie. But knowing that this was the last time they would be together, she wanted Sōma to know everything he could before he left.

"It… it was delicious, Sōma… it really was." She whispered.

"…" Sōma was stunned. Even though he knew that the omelette had the best shot of making Erina say delicious, hearing it from his love herself brought a sense of relief and joy.

"Sōma?" Erina called out, a bit concerned at the silence she was getting.

"… Thank you. It finally happened." Sōma finally spoke, tearing up a bit. He embraced his best friend, his one love… his Erina.

"Yeah… I… I'm sorry that you couldn't be here to hear it." Erina was tearing up as well. What should have been the crown to their relationship, the moment that should have been one of pure happiness was bittersweet.

So they held their embrace. The princess and the commoner.

As they parted, Erina looked at Sōma. Her Sōma. A thought crossed her mind, something that she really wanted to know. "Sōma? If you were alive, would we have…" she was about to ask her question, but stopped as she noticed that the world around her was fading. Including Sōma.

"Sōma?"

"I guess you're waking up soon." Sōma said as he looked at his arms. It was very slow, but his fingers were starting to fade.

"No! I wanted to be with you longer! Please don't leave! Please…" Erina shouted, but losing her words as Sōma slowly shook his head.

"As much as I want to… and I want to so badly… I have to. You have to wake up eventually." Sōma sadly said.

Erina took him in one final embrace. "I know… but it hurts. I wanted to be with you forever."

"And one day, we will." Sōma said. As the house and garden was fading, Sōma saw a bed. Erina's bed.

So Sōma got up and took Erina's hand.

"Where are we going?" She asked innocently. Sōma laughed at her expression.

"To bed." He replied, and walked her over to the stray bed in the sea of white.

He sat her down, and took a seat beside her.

"Sōma… thank you. You helped me with so much in my life, even… even after death." Erina thanked. Looking back on her life up to that point, she was happy. While she was mean to him, it seemed like that day… that fateful day when they first met… that day was the start of something amazing, 10 years of her life that she would never want to take back. She had so many friends, she was so happy in her life… and it was thanks to the redhead sitting beside her. The loving redhead who went through so much for her.

"Well, I have to say thanks to you too Erina." Sōma replied. The redhead never felt such motivation, such competition, such rivalry from anyone besides the blonde. Add in the love and care she gave him until his final days, and Sōma felt like his life was complete.

Erina giggled. "Well, I… I… I guess this is the end." She said dejectedly.

"Yeah. I guess so. I'm sorry I couldn't be here longer." He replied, the same sadness evident in his tone.

"It's ok. All… all good things have to come to an end, right?" She said, tearing up.

"Yeah…" He answered.

"Hey Erina…" Sōma called out, as he started to lay her down.

"Yes Sōma?" she asked, looking into the eyes of her one and only love.

Sōma smiled. "I love you. Do you love me?"

Erina nodded, as she felt her eyes closing. "Of course, Sōma."

"I love you more than anything in the world." That was the last thing she said, before the world went dark, and she felt Sōma's lips on hers for the last time.

* * *

Erina's eyes fluttered open, and when she was fully awake, she noticed 2 things: tears running down her face, and the brightest smile she ever had.

"Thank you Sōma. I love you." She whispered. She then heard a knock on the door.

"Who is it?" She called.

"It's us!" She heard the familiar voice of Hisako.

"Come in." She replied.

The door opened, and in walked the two girls who helped her through this entire ordeal.

"So what time do you want to head to the rest… are you alright Erina?" Hisako asked, a bit worriedly.

Erina was a bit confused at her question, but quickly realized that the tears from earlier must have been on her face.

"Yes, I'm ok… I'm actually feeling a lot better." Erina said to the two girls.

"H-how come, Nakiri-san?" Megumi asked.

"I… I talked with Sōma in my dreams last night." Erina replied, a small smile on her face.

"He told me a lot of stuff… it was hard, but it was nice to see him again."

"What did he tell you?" Hisako asked, walking over to the bed. Megumi went over as well, and the two quickly sat down on either side of Erina.

Erina then told them what happened in her dream. The memories she recalled, the fear she had because of it, and her final talk with Sōma. Hisako and Megumi didn't doubt the fact that Sōma came to Erina in a dream. They both felt like Sōma would do as much as he could to make his girlfriend happy. During the discussion, there was laughing, there was some crying, especially when Erina explained his last words, and by the end, all 3 of them were smiling.

"That's great Erina!" Hisako told the blonde. She was happy for her, happy that Erina could finally rest easy, knowing that the relationship between Erina and Sōma would hold forever.

"Y-yes, it really is Nakiri-san!" Megumi added. She knew that Sōma would be able to help Erina with whatever her problems were, and while it was a bit unnerving to know that the last time Sōma was here was in Erina's dream, she was ok with it. Erina was smiling brightly, and she had no more doubts. Megumi knew that Sōma would want it that way.

"T-thank you Hisako, Tadokoro. For everything." Erina thanked, bowing her head in respect of her 2 friends.

"It was no problem, Erina. Right Megumi-chan?" Hisako asked the bluenette, who nodded.

"Now, I think we have a diner to go to, don't we?"

* * *

In the quiet streets of Sumire Town's shopping district, people were setting up shop for the day. News of Sōma's death spread around the town after his father, Jōichirō Yukihira, broke the news after a day of work at the diner. Jōichirō told them not to grieve too hard, as Sōma wouldn't have wanted it like that. So after a few days, the townspeople bounced back, and started up shop again, not wanting to disappoint the boy. Some even created specialties to honor the redhead, including Jōichirō himself. He took a few recipes that Sōma made, and put them as specials at Restaurant Yukihira.

But today, as the townsfolk were starting their workday and students were heading to school, they stopped to look at the people who just showed up.

They saw 3 heads: one with short, pink hair, one with 2 blue pigtails, and one with long, flowing blonde hair.

Almost immediately, people were talking.

'Is that…'

'That's Erina Nakiri!'

'Not just that, but Hisako Arato and Megumi Tadokoro! They're Tōtsuki alumni!'

'They graduated with Jōichirō's son, right?'

'What are they doing here?'

The 3 girls ignored the chatter, and walked up to the red roofed building.

' _Restaurant Yukihira_ ' The sign read. The blonde took her phone out, and dialed a number. After a few seconds of talking, she hung up, and the 3 girls were soon in the presence of a long haired man. He was wearing the black Restaurant Yukihira uniform, and the serious look on his face turned into a warm smile when he saw the 3 faces.

"Hey, look! It's Sōma's friends and his girlfriend." He called out to said girls, who blushed at being called that.

"H-hello, Jōichirō-san." Megumi timidly greeted.

"G-good morning, Yukihira-san." Hisako said.

"U-um… hello, Saiba-sama." Erina replied. Despite him keeping his last name for at least 10 years, Erina always called Jōichirō as Saiba-sama due to the circumstances of their first meeting. Jōichirō would never mind, though.

"Would it be possible that we could talk inside, Saiba-sama?" Erina asked. She didn't want anyone besides them 4 to hear what was going to some.

Jōichirō nodded, and led the girls into the restaurant.

As the girls sat down at the counter in front of the kitchen, Jōichirō started preparing a dish.

There was no sounds made besides the chopping of various ingredients, as Erina didn't know where to start.

After taking a deep breath, Erina finally started to speak. "Um, Saiba-sama… were you informed about what happened to Sōma?"

Jōichirō stopped cutting the onion in his hands for a few seconds, before resuming. "Yeah. Got a call about it from the airline a few days after it happened… How you holding up?"

Erina blinked in surprise. "I'm doing fine now… but are you alright? He was your son."

Jōichirō chuckled a bit. "Yeah, but I didn't do all that much for him. I taught him a bit, but he mostly learned by himself. That's also why I made him go to Tōtsuki, so he could learn as much as he could about cooking. He is important to me, yes. But I heard him talk about his time at Tōtsuki, and when he was talking about you, he had the biggest smile on his face. I was close to him, but not nearly as much as you."

The 3 girls let those words sink in.

"I see…" Erina said.

Jōichirō kept cooking, putting some ingredients into a pot, and letting it cook. "So, I'm guessing you guys are here because you finally called a dish of his good, right?"

The 3 girls nodded. "How did you know, Jōichirō-san?" Megumi asked.

He shrugged. "Eh, he just told me to keep an eye out for you, and… wait! Let me get something." Jōichirō then walked upstairs, leaving the girls alone, no sounds made except for the stove's fire.

He then came back down, but had nothing in his hands.

"Saiba-sama? What did you go upstairs for?" Erina asked, confused.

"Just needed to grab something. Anyways, let me tell you girls something." Jōichirō said, a grin on his face. The girls looked expectantly at the man, waiting patiently.

"Before Sōma went to Tōtsuki, I told him one thing. The secret to becoming a great chef is finding a woman that will make you want to give all the food you make to her."

Hisako and Megumi looked surprised, but Erina knew that already. She asked him once while they were dating, why he was making her taste so much dishes, and Sōma gave her that answer.

"You," He pointed to the blonde. "Are the woman that Sōma found. I have to say, good for him." He smiled. It was a coincidence that the granddaughter of his friend would become his son's girlfriend, but he was glad that Sōma followed his advice.

Erina blushed at the praise, getting a giggle from her friends.

"He told me to give this to you if you ever said his food was good." He then went into his pocket, eventually pulling out a folded piece of paper. He gave it to Erina, and nodded to her, encouraging her to read it. After unfolding the letter, Erina started to read.

" _Hey Erina!_

 _I guess my food really was good enough for you to admit it. How long did it take?"_

Erina laughed, as she knew that it was 10 years in the making.

" _Anyway, I'm sorry that I couldn't be there to hear you say it in person."_

Erina sniffled. That line hit close to home for her, as Sōma couldn't be around for her. Never again…

As she felt the comforting hands of her 2 friends rub her back, she continued on.

" _But, it's great that you did all the same! I don't think you know how great it makes me feel that my girlfriend finally complimented me on something!"_

Erina heard a few giggles from her friends, who were reading along, but a quick glare from her stopped any further laughter.

" _So, to celebrate this occasion, I have something special planned. Just ask pops for the thing."_

Erina was confused, but decided to follow instructions. After asking Jōichirō about "the thing", he said "oh, right" and scrambled for a bit until he pulled out something from his pocket. A small black box.

Erina felt a chill down her spine. She wasn't entirely sure of what the item was, but she felt compelled to open it. The box had a small paper on the top, instructing her to turn the letter over, and open the box.

What she saw stunned her.

There was a golden ring, with small diamonds on the sides. The gems were pure and clear, creating a nice, shiny view. In the center of the ring was a gemstone that matched the colour of Erina eyes, a purple and pink gem that shone brightly in the light. Erina's eyes widened. She then looked to the letter that she flipped over.

" _Erina Nakiri, my princess, my loving girlfriend… will you marry me?"_

Erina was crying, Hisako and Megumi were hugging her while Jōichirō looked on at the scene. Jōichirō thought that it was good that his son was able to get the message out to his girlfriend. While it was unfortunate that it took 10 years and Sōma's passing in order for it to happen, he was glad that it happened all the same. The way Sōma talked about Erina was the same way that he would describe his wife, and that brought both a smile and a tear to his face.

Hisako and Megumi were very happy for their blonde friend. It was clear that at some point, Sōma would propose to Erina, as they were so crazy for each other, that Hisako, as loving as she was to Akira, always felt like she didn't love him as much as Erina loved Sōma, just because the love they had for each other, was too strong. Even in death, they were able to help each other so much. They were certainly happy for the couple, but the fact that the redhead wasn't here with them brought them back to reality instantly. They tried their best to comfort Erina through their tears, forming due to the cruel reality of the world, that a couple so in love couldn't enjoy eternal happiness.

For Erina, the tears she was shedding were bittersweet. On one hand, she was in pure shock, awe and joy. She always had the thought of marriage in the back of her mind, wondering if her and Sōma would get married and live their lives in peace and success. That's what she was about to ask him in her dream. She was amazed at the ring. Sōma must have designed it with her in mind, because everything on the ring, from the diamonds which represented her rich background, the gold ring representing her blonde hair, and the gemstone being the same colour of her eyes… it was gorgeous. It was something that would remind someone of Erina Nakiri. It was no doubt expensive, but Erina knew that Sōma would spare no expenses for her. She would have accepted in a heartbeat…

But that caused her immense grief. She couldn't accept, not because she would have declined… but who would she have married? The one who gave her the ring, her fiery redhead, the love of her life… he was gone. Now knowing what Sōma's plans were, that he was planning to come back to Japan, planning to spend time with his family and friends, it clicked for her. He sent the omelette recipe to her because he almost knew that she would say it was delicious. He was planning to come back, and because his promise was finally completed, he would feel validated to ask for her hand in marriage. It would have been great, the two loves overcoming all problems in their lives and getting married, staying together forever. But without him here, something was missing. The delicious dish was there, the promise was complete… but no one was going to ask for her hand.

Even so, Erina took the ring, and put it on her left ring finger. Through her tears, she quietly said to herself, only loud enough for her to hear:

"Of course I would marry you, Sōma… if you were here, I would say yes in a heartbeat…"

She hoped that in heaven, or wherever her "fiancé" was, he would hear her and smile.

The tears coming from the girls lasted for a while, until they all calmed down, and started looking at the ring.

"I-it's beautiful…" Hisako commented, inspecting the ring on Erina's finger.

"Y-yes… the gem in the center matches your eyes, Nakiri-san." Megumi added, making a small, teary smile appear on said blonde's face.

"T-thank you, Hisako, Tadokoro…" She gave a small chuckle. "Sōma sure went all out for this…"

"Heh, no kidding." Jōichirō laughed, causing the 3 girls to look at the man who was still cooking.

"Um… how much did Sōma-kun spend on this, Yukihira-san?" Hisako asked, a bit cautiously. She knew that Sōma would spend a lot of money on this ring, but something like this? She was a bit worried.

"Hm… when he told me… I think he said… about 1 million yen?"(Mini AN: US Equivalent: Just under 9k)

"WHAT?!" The 3 girls shouted.

"Yeah, he had a ring he was going to propose to you with, but I just decided to give you the wedding ring instead." Jōichirō shrugged, as the girls were still in shock.

Hisako let out a sigh. "Jeez, Sōma-kun. 1 million yen for a ring."

Megumi let out a sheepish giggle. "Actually, I could see Sōma-kun doing that for Nakiri-san."

Erina laughed a bit as well. "Yes… He would have done it even if I told him not to. So this isn't surprising."

"Yeah, told him that I thought he was spending too much. He told me, 'Well, I don't think even this is enough for Erina.' So I forced him not to spend more. But anyways, to celebrate, this is on the house!" Jōichirō then gave the girls a bowl of beef stew. Like with all of Jōichirō's dishes, it blew them away.

* * *

When the day started at Restaurant Yukihira, Jōichirō asked if the girls wanted to stay. They gladly stayed around and even helped out with serving the patrons of the restaurant. All the patrons were stunned that 3 of the top students from Tōtsuki's alumni were there, but after some explanations from both Erina and Jōichirō, the shock died down and the girls were welcomed with open arms, some patrons even congratulating Erina for her relationship with Sōma. Again, it was bittersweet, seeing Sōma's neighbours who accept her despite her rich and successful background, but Sōma wasn't there beside her with a smile on his face.

After the shift ended, Jōichirō thanked the girls for helping him out with a small meal.

"Thanks for the food!" They called.

"No problem. Now I have something important to tell Miss Nakiri, so you better listen up, ok?" The man asked, getting a nod from the girls.

"Now, I'm getting kinda old, and while I love this place, I don't know if I can run it for too much longer." He started.

"So, because Sōma's… not here anymore… I might as well give the rights to his fiancé." He finished. The girls let the words register, and Erina's eyes widened, her hands waving rapidly in front of her face.

"B-b-but Saiba-sama! This is your restaurant! I couldn't possibly- "

"It's fine! I knew Sōma would take over, and by the time he did, you guys would have been together already. You can do whatever with the restaurant, I just want to live here." Jōichirō grinned.

"Well… thank you Saiba-sama. I'll be sure to maintain this place, and I'll pay for the living arrangements." She bowed her head, which Jōichirō patted.

"No problem, kiddo. Now, I think you have a restaurant of yourself to take care of, so I'll let you guys go now." Jōichirō said.

As he walked them over to Erina's waiting car, the girls bowed their heads.

"Thank you, Saiba-sama/Jōichirō-san/Yukihira-san!" They said together.

Jōichirō simply grinned again. "Thank you guys for coming! I'll see you again soon, right?"

"Yes!" They replied.

And with the keys to the restaurant and a ring on her finger, Erina, Hisako and Megumi drove back to the Nakiri Manor.

When the girls left, Jōichirō looked up at the sky. "Good job Sōma. You sure did a lot for those girls." He walked back into the restaurant, content after the events of the day.

* * *

An exclusive ceremony for Sōma's closest friends was held a few days later, at the Nakiri Manor. Erina, Hisako and Megumi got the message out to them, and they all accepted, planning to head to the manor. As Erina greeted everyone, they said their condolences to her and asked her how she was feeling. Alice gave Erina a big hug when she arrived, telling her that she would be there for her cousin as well.

As everyone was talking about Sōma, how he helped them through stuff and how he was such a good friend and rival, Erina could only smile. It was amazing to think that she now had such a large group of friends who she was very close to, and she had Sōma to thank for that. These memories that everyone was bringing up made her feel even better, that her loving boyfriend could make everyone laugh, and that he would try to protect them from anything.

But it finally came time for the girls who organized the event to speak. Hisako was first, walking gracefully to the center of the living room, and sitting in the single seated couch that was chosen as the place to talk. Everyone was sat down on the couches, waiting patiently.

"Hi everyone. So… about Sōma-kun… I first should thank him for everything he did for all of us. I don't think we would be so close without him." She said with a chuckle, the group responding as such.

"But… I have to thank him personally, for helping me mend my relationship with Erina. After the Autumn Election… I was devastated. Hayama-kun," Hisako grabbed her boyfriend's hand. "He told me that someone who was fine with second place could never be a good opponent, and because of that, my skills were limited. Those words hurt, and while I'll always forgive him for that, it was the truth. I couldn't stand to look at Erina after, I felt I was unworthy of being in her presence. So I left until the Stagiaire started."

Erina remembered that time vividly. It was hard for her to do stuff without Hisako around to help her. She felt depressed without her friend beside her. And while they eventually laughed it off, she was curious as to where Sōma had a place in this. She just saw Hisako start to be more of a friend and less of a secretary when she came back to her.

"After my Stagiaire with Sōma-kun ended, he asked if I was going back to Erina soon. When I told him no, he wanted to listen to my problems, what I just told you guys. After… he told me that I shouldn't aim to be behind her, but to be beside her. So after that, I tried my best to be beside her, as a stronger chef. And after we won against central… I started calling her by her first name only. As a friend. And we've been inseparable since." Hisako said with a smile on her face.

While the group was clapping for their friend, Erina was surprised. Once again, Sōma did something to help his friend, even if they weren't on friendly terms. She silently thanked him for fixing the relationship of her and Hisako.

"So when Erina told me about Sōma-kun's passing… I was crushed. I never got the chance to thank him properly for giving me another chance to be Erina's friend. He would have told me that I alone was the reason, but… it really was him who fixed my relationship with Erina, and made me think of myself as my own chef, not someone else's."

"So, if you can hear this Sōma-kun… thanks. You helped me in such a big way." Hisako finished, with tears in her eyes, the group clapping again. Next up was Megumi, Sōma's best friend, the only other girl besides his girlfriend who was so close to him. Ryōko and Yuki were beside her, ready to comfort her, because her, along with Erina, would take this the hardest.

"H-hello everyone… u-um… Sōma-kun… Sōma-kun did so much for me while we were in Tōtsuki. I… I was at the bottom of my class in junior high, and people would call me a failure and an idiot…" Megumi was already starting to tear up.

For her friends who weren't Polar Star members, they were shocked. Megumi was the fifth seat of the elite ten, and she was the lowest ranking student going into high school? It was a very big shift. They were definitely surprised by the news.

"I got a letter saying that if I failed again… I… I would be expelled. And I first met Sōma-kun in Chapelle-sensei's class. But with Sōma's help… we passed. We even made Chapelle-sensei smile." Megumi continued, a small smile on her face.

"After that, Sōma did so much to help me be more confident… he even risked his spot at Tōtsuki for me in a shokugeki." She laughed at that. It was nice to see how much Sōma would do to help her.

"And with his help, I'm sitting in front of you all, a Tōtsuki alumni." She bowed her head, and got applause from her friends.

Everyone was very happy for Megumi, and thankful to Sōma for letting the caring girl be a part of their lives. Erina was especially happy for Megumi. If she wasn't there to comfort Erina in her time of need, she wasn't sure if she would have ever gotten over Sōma's death.

"Sōma-kun was… was my best friend and he felt like an older brother. He helped me learn so much, and was always fun to be around, if also a little nervous, because he could be pretty irrational at times." That got a laugh out of the group, as they agreed on Sōma's impulsive behaviour and the anxiety that would follow.

"But… when I heard that… that Sōma-kun… died… I-I-I couldn't believe it. I wanted to learn more… I wanted to hang out with him again… but… but Sōma-kun…" Megumi tried to continue, but the wound was too fresh. She broke down, crying because her brother/best friend wasn't around anymore. Yuki and Ryōko gave the girl a hug, as well as Hisako and Erina. The girls knew this would be hard for her, and expected that at some point, this would happen. Sōma was just too close to her for her not to break.

"It's ok, Megumi-chan… let it out…" The girls comforted, moving Megumi from the talking couch to the 3-seater, where Yuki and Ryōko let Megumi cry.

And finally… there was Erina. Alice and Hisako were ready to comfort her as she walked over to the talk chair. While Megumi was taking it very hard, Erina took this the hardest. The level that her and Sōma loved each other… it was a sight to see. The teasing and fake arguments that Sōma and Erina did were the way they expressed their love while in Tōtsuki. The way they looked at each other was filled with nothing but love, care and joy. So for Erina to look at those eyes as they closed forever… it was something she could never forget.

Erina got in the chair, and waited for Megumi. She wanted her to hear this, because Erina felt like she wanted to say so much. After Megumi calmed down, and nodded slowly at Erina, the blonde took a deep breath.

"Hello guys, thank you so much for coming. I know Sōma was an important figure in all of our lives, so it means a lot to me that you guys came here to honor him." Erina began.

"Oh Erina, none of us would have missed this for anything! Right guys?" Alice asked, getting nods and words of acceptance from everyone.

"Thanks. Well anyways… when I first met Sōma… I hated him." That got laughs from the group, even from Megumi and Hisako.

"W-what's so funny?" Erina asked confused.

"Jeez Erina, you're so dense! All of us knew that!" Alice teased, getting a pout from her cousin who also had a light blush.

"A-anyways! I thought Sōma was… an annoying commoner… who… who never deserved to be in Tōtsuki, and definitely didn't deserve to be… be in my presence." Erina was starting to tear up. Despite her final talk with the redhead, who told her that he didn't blame her for any of her harsh behaviour, it still hurt to think about how mean she was to him.

"But still… Sōma would never get out of my life, always showing up to annoy me. But then my father came." Everyone went quiet at the mention of Azami Nakiri.

"Everyone helped me so much to get away from him, to free me of his influence. But at the center of it all… it was Sōma. When he gave me that tempura don… I found my reason for cooking again. So we rebelled. All of us came together, and we won. We beat my father, and restored Tōtsuki to it's former glory. I think it was at that point that I started to fall in love with Sōma."

"It took a year, some help from Alice and Hisako, and a shokugeki challenge, but we finally started dating. And being with Sōma, in real life or over the phone… it was the happiest time of my life." Erina continued, getting a warm smile from the girls in the room.

"It was so nice to see that he forgave everything I did to him, and let us be happy. We helped each other through a lot. But when I was woken up in the middle of the night… when I saw him for the last time…" Erina was crying, Hisako and Alice hugging her.

"Do you want to stop Erina?" Hisako asked. Erina shook her head.

"No…" Erina wanted to do this, she wanted to be strong, she wanted to let everyone know, for her love's sake. "When I s-s-saw Sōma die before my very eyes… I felt like a piece of my life was taken. So much of my life was revolved around him… that I was feeling lost… I d-didn't know what to do without him."

"I thought that we would be together forever. And he thought so too. H-he was planning to come back to Japan soon." She said, shocking everyone except for Megumi and Hisako.

"H-he made a promise to me… that I would say that his food was good… and he did it. His… his last recipe that he sent to me was delicious… and he was going to celebrate in the best way." She then showed her left hand, which she kept hidden by putting her right hand over it. Everyone looked at her hand, and noticed the gold and purple ring on her ring finger. Everyone except Hisako and Megumi gasped, knowing the implications of that ring. The girls were even tearing up a bit.

"Yes… we were going to get married… and we would have been so happy…" Erina was crying harder now. While the ring was amazing, and so very beautiful in her eyes, it would forever remind her of what should have been, if the world didn't take her love away.

"But… I'm still very happy right now. I have all of you guys here with me, celebrating the wonderful man who came into our lives. If he wasn't there to link us all together, I don't think we would be doing this." Erina smiled, wiping some tears away. It was true. If Sōma didn't go to Tōtsuki, Erina wouldn't think of anyone here besides Hisako, Alice and maybe Ikumi as friends. She would have looked down on them. But that's what Sōma did, bring a group of people together, creating a new generation of chefs.

"Sōma… thank you so much, for everything… I think we can all say that you were very important to all of us… and we will never forget you." Erina finished, with a teary smile. Everyone walked up to her and they shared a group hug.

And somewhere in the afterlife, Sōma saw all of this. He had a smile on his face.

"I'm glad. I'll never forget you guys either."

* * *

A/N: Hello everyone!

So... it's finally here. The last chapter of my very first story. It's funny, I was never good in English class (although tbf, it was more examination of writing than actual English). I only started writing because of reading fics. I wanted to let off some steam from a stressful first year of university, and creative writing was my outlet, resulting in this. Pretty happy with it, when it's all said and done.

Now, there is an epilogue after this. I want to write just a bit about the 3 main girls, and what them and the others (but mostly Erina, Hisako and Megumi) did after.

Wow, I actually just don't know what to say. Usually I have long AN's, but I guess since this is done, there's not much more to say.

One of the reviewers asked if a chapter was going to be longer. Well, this definitely is. The chapter is almost 9400 words, and not including the AN! I expected it to end with just Erina getting the ring, but that felt incomplete to me, so I added the bit of Joichiro giving ownership of Yukihira's to Erina, and the ceremony after. So, wish granted?

So, please leave reviews! As I say every chapter, I PM everyone who does with a thank you and some words! I also respond to any inquiries that a review has: future ideas, thoughts, questions, critiques, anything! So leave a review! I don't know how to reply to guests, so I just didn't, but to all guests, I'll ask you one question:

Did you enjoy it? And this goes to everyone as well, I just didn't want the guests to be left out! Did you enjoy this chapter? Did it go how you expected it to? Do you have any critiques on what I could have done? Let me know!

Also, I mentioned this last chapter, but I'm writing a new story! Another Sorina fic, based on friendship, not love. It took a backseat as I was so motivated to do this chapter, but with just the epilogue of this left, I now have more time to write it! (At least, until I have to worry about school again... ᗒ ͟ʖᗕ)

So... thanks for reading, and I hope to see you again!


	8. Epilogue: A Visit

Disclaimer: I don't own Shokugeki no Soma, just this story.

* * *

5 Years Later…

Erina Nakiri.

At the age of 30, she has been recognized by the culinary world as the best chef of her generation. Her restaurant, _La Belle Vie_ , has been the best restaurant in Asia for the past 8 years, according to the Miele Guide. And even so, she takes a lot of time to add more high-class cuisine from all locations to her menu, making it a great place to eat for the rich and famous.

She is still asked to do tastings by over 50 of the best chefs of previous generations, as her God's Tongue has not faltered in its 30-year life. And if a cocky upstart chef tries to flaunt their skills, a review from Erina would instantly bring them back to reality.

She is seen as one of the most powerful women in the world by many. In addition, her stunning looks captivate any man who sees her. She is recognized as one of the most beautiful women in Japan, which leads many to be disappointed when she is pictured with a very noticeable and extravagant wedding ring.

Everyone wonders who the lucky man is, the man that gets to call Erina Nakiri his wife.

Erina however, was living a life without a husband, to the knowledge of only her closest friends. Her husband was in the sky, living without the limits of reality.

* * *

Sōma was unnaturally somber today. After first going into the afterlife, he found his mother. After a tearful reunion, Sōma was left to his own devices. Of course, that led to him still cooking, as one day, his fiancé would join him. He still had to impress her, of course.

He was enjoying his time in the afterlife, but at times, he felt alone. Sure, his mother was there, and of course he made friends, as that was only natural to the redhead.

But… without his princess, he couldn't find the joy he had before his death.

Today was an important day in both of their lives, as well as many others.

April 21. The day he left the world. What should have been a simple plane trip to Turkey turned out to be the last time he would see Erina in his life.

Because of the traditions of the afterlife, anyone who wanted to see the changes that's happened in their absence would be allowed to walk around areas of interest every year, on the anniversary of their death. Sōma, like usual, took that chance, so he was walking around the streets of Tokyo, headed to an important place.

After a while, Sōma finally found his destination: his grave. It was on the right of his mother's grave, and just had a simple inscription.

'Sōma Yukihira.

November 6, 20XX – April 21, 20XX.

Inspiration. Friend to all.'

It never made Sōma happy to see that, as while the feeling was fading, he was a bit bitter that he had to die in the first place. He wanted to come back, see his smiling girlfriend, and propose to her. But fate had other plans.

As he was looking at the grave, he heard some footsteps. Looking to his left, he saw something that made him smile. A sad, wistful smile.

His lover, the princess of the culinary world, Erina Nakiri, was holding a small bouquet of flowers, wearing all black clothing, the same outfit she wore to his funeral.

As he couldn't walk up and give her a hug, he decided to stay beside her, as she put down the flowers in front of his grave.

"Hey Sōma. How are you today?" She started.

' _It's been alright. Would have been much better if I was with you however._ ' he thought to himself.

"The last year has been good. I was the maid of honor at Hisako and Hayama's wedding a few weeks ago. It was amazing, both of them looked great. They even thanked you, for helping bring them together." Erina had a small smile, most likely thinking about what their wedding would have been like.

Sōma was happy for the newlyweds. While the fact that he couldn't be there to celebrate with Hisako, Akira and the rest of their friends saddened him, he was still overjoyed that the two of them were able to marry.

It was similar to the rest of their friends. Hisako and Akira were the last of the seated members of the gem generation to get married. Alice and Ryō first, Takumi and Ikumi second. Erina didn't marry for obvious reasons, and Megumi, while she could choose from many potential suitors due to her high standing as a chef, was still single, waiting for someone that she could connect strongly to. Erina always kept him up on what was happening between their friends with these annual talks. Though she didn't know it, all of her words were getting to Sōma.

"Alice and Ryō also had a kid early this year. His eyes were red… just like theirs. They called him Sōma. I guess you'll always be a part of our lives, huh?" Erina asked, a bit of tears forming in her eyes.

Sōma wished that he could wipe the tears away, but unfortunately, he couldn't. So the only thing he could do was stand there, and see his heart breaking in front of him.

Erina wiped the tears herself before continuing, a lot shakier than before.

"Uh… um… I-I-I don't have much more to tell you. I-I got number 1 again… as much as I love the attention, it would've… it would've been great to share it with you." She continued, breaking bit by bit. It hurt Sōma every year, that his lover, the strong and confident Erina Nakiri, would always break down in front of his grave, and what hurt more was how helpless he felt. He couldn't say anything to her, couldn't hold her… He couldn't be there for her.

"It would've been nice… to see us get married, have a child. And we would've been together through all of it, ruling the culinary world. But… but…" Erina slowly fell to her knees.

"I miss you Sōma. So… so, so much. You know that. Besides," She brought up her hand. "You proposed to me after all." And Erina cried.

Sōma wanted so badly to do something, anything, to make Erina feel better. But unfortunately, he couldn't.

So he had to watch, defeated, as Erina mourned. A few tears started to fall from his eyes, but he quickly wiped it away. When he saw Hisako and Megumi walk over and comfort Erina, he started to leave. While he wasn't there for her, she was still in good hands.

"I'm so sorry, Erina. I'll make it up to you. Someday."

* * *

A/N: Hey everyone!

So... this is it. This is the end of I Promise You. It's weird, it's so odd to think that I wrote a finished piece of writing. I don't know if I've said this before in one of these notes, but all this stemmed from a desire to make a tragic Sorina story, and an outlet for me, a place where I could get out the frustrations of a rough year of school.

This story isn't perfect, but it's something I'm proud of, that I'm happy I made. I don't expect this to open the floodgates, this be the story that makes people think "huh, this fandom can use more stories like this." But still, I'm happy that I got out the first Sorina death fic out. I love tragedies, no matter the fandom. As long as something clicks, it's great.

Also, I'm so glad that so many people took the time to read this. Over 50 reviews, 70 follows, and 60 favourites. It's something that I'm also proud of. When I look at this story in the future, I'll think to myself, "Wow, it's amazing that something I created was liked by so many."

I thank you guys so much for reading this. Whether you were here from the very start, or you're from the future, where you saw this and decided to read, thank you. All the reviews I've gotten are great, and they gave me a big inspiration to keep going, to finish this.

But enough with that! Onto other stuff!

This epilogue... I don't know. I think it's alright, but it definitely could be better. I was originally planning for this to have a much lighter tone. Soma would have been able to interact with Erina at his grave, and they would've had a small heart to heart for the few minutes that Soma would have been given. But, that would go entirely against what I said in the last chapter. If I went with that, Soma's words about never being able to talk to Erina again would have been hollow.

So instead, it changed to what you see here.

So, leave reviews about anything! Like always, I'll always PM anyone who leaves one.

Criticism, compliments, future ideas for stories, anything! As long as it's constructive, I'll answer! (Not guests though. Sorry. ¯\\_ツ_/¯)

And if people want to see it, I might add in a bonus chapter. The idea? What would have happened if chapter 2 didn't happen? I could even do another bonus: what if Erina didn't wake up to talk to Soma? If you do want to see that, I'm totally open to it! Again, it'll be added on as either bonuses of this story, or separate oneshots. Just leave your thoughts in a review if that interests anyone.

Also, school will be starting in 2 months for me. I actually have to select courses tomorrow (as of: July 5th, 2017), so I'm pretty swamped with that and other school related stuff. So, I'll try and get my oneshot out before then as my final big project before school becomes that. If you have any ideas for future stories, they would be small oneshots, nothing like this, or my long oneshot in the making. But leave ideas anyway, it might get inspire me to create short stories. You know, some time spent before uni takes up all of it...

So, after 8 chapters of grief, loss and closure... thank you for reading, and I hope to see you again, wherever that may be! :)

[I Promise You, A Shokugeki no Soma story. Main pairing: SomaxErina. Word count: 26,945]

P.S. Shoutout to nagitochris! She helped give me ideas for this epilogue, as well as many more ideas for stuff! (I don't know if this is what you meant in your messages, but it's something.)


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